


Run, Melos!

by terratabula



Category: Avatar (2009)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Eventual Romance, F/M, Gen, Multi, Slow Burn, Slow Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-26
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:07:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 9
Words: 40,473
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23864269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/terratabula/pseuds/terratabula
Summary: Tomie Takahashi, a starry-eyed undergraduate student, who was the few to receive the international RDA scholarship and acceptance in the very selective Avatar Program. With only a year of training, studying, learning and careful planning for her trip. She expected Pandora to be like a trip to Mars. Pandora, however offered more than she expected as experienced the adventure, friendship, and love at the heart of the very jungle she dreamed of.
Relationships: Eytukan/Mo'at (Avatar), Neytiri te Tskaha Mo'at’ite/Jake Sully, Norm Spellman/Original Female Character(s), Tsu’tey te Rongloa Ateyitan/Original Character(s), Tsu’tey te Rongloa Ateyitan/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 18
Kudos: 91





	1. Big Dipper, Little Dipper, and Centaurus

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading this story. The updates will vary on my level of interest and how busy I am, but thankfully due to quarantine, I was able to write about seven chapters for Run, Melos! and will be editing and updating them. Please enjoy this short prologue and if you have any questions please send asks on my tumblr at koffe3e

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this story. The updates will vary on my level of interest and how busy I am, but thankfully due to quarantine, I was able to write about seven chapters for Run, Melos! and will be editing and updating them. Please enjoy this short prologue and if you have any questions please send asks on my tumblr at terratabula

A young girl in her mid-twenties, with her hair tied up in bun and her face reflected a special type of tired as she pulled her young daughter up the hill of rural Japan. 

The lights from the city seemed so dim and the night sky was finally dark, as the mother-daughter duo finally reached to the top of the mountain. The grass rustled against the wind and brushed gently against the bare legs of the girls. 

The mother plopped down her butt and fell backward son her back. Her daughter stared at her bizarre behavior. “Come on, Tomie, lay down.” Her mother beckoned her.

Tomie lightly squatted down onto her butt before awkwardly leaning back into the grass. She looked up and saw stars. The young girl had never seen so many stars in place before, her eyes twinkled at the brightness, the vastness the dark universe beheld. “Tomie…” the mother called out, she pointed up to a configuration of stars that looked like a ladle, “ That’s is Big Dipper…” Tomie followed her hand as she pointed to the other configuration of stars, “ that’s the baby, Little Dipper.”

Tomie turned her head to look at her mother, her bun was now gone and her hair sprawled out beneath like jet black ink. “Is Little Dipper a baby like me?”

“Yes, Little Dipper is the baby, and Big Dipper is the momma.” She explained.

The young woman pointed to the bright star, “Tomie, look…” Tomie tilted her head towards the direction her mother was looking at, “ that is Alpha Centauri A, that is where Pandora is.”

Tomie stared at the bright star that sat in the Alpha Centauri system. 

Pandora… 

* * *

~ Chapter 1 preview ~

The flight assistant ahead in his grey jumpsuit began speaking. “ When that ramp comes down, go directly into the base. Do not stop.” He pulled his exo-pack over his face. “ go straight inside, and wait for my mark!” 

The plane door opened with a low hiss.

The bright fog lights shone on top of the building lit up the dark plane. The marines began trotting to the compound. 

Tomie and Jake looked at each other. “I'll stay behind with you, not because, you know, you're the only person I talked to in six years. “ Tomie jokes. 

Jake chuckled, he swung his bag onto the back of the wheelchair. “Same here, except that I don't know your name. He looked at the bag that rested on her shoulder, which had her name tag sewn in by the courtesy of her mother. “Tommy?’ 

Tomie exhaled, she saw it coming, “ it's pronounced Tome-me-ey.” The girl explained.

“Ah! Nice to meet you Tomie.” Jake extended his hand out.

“And it's nice to meet you Mr.Jake.” Tomie smiled, she shook her hand. 


	2. Gray Tarmac and Vibrant Jungle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tomie finally arrived to Pandora and was disappointed at the sight of Hell's gate, she expected to feel the clean air of Pandora on her skin but felt familiar griminess of smog hug her, and greet her with the recognizable gray sky. She looked across the gray tarmac, over the silver, buzzing barbed wire fence to see the beautiful forest, and the white fluffy clouds glide across the blue sky. This wasn't exactly the welcome she was expecting.

Tomie looked forward at the men and women ahead of her. All she could make out was was the fuzziness of green and a darker shade of green. 

They were blurry.

She blinked a couple times, squeezing her eyes shut. She squinted her dark brown eyes at the man right across from her, it was obvious that this man was not of military status yet sat with them, he seemed too, what was the word- “out of shape” but she squinted harder, her vision was sharper now. But she was still dealing with the fog of Cryo-sleep, which occasionally happens to some people. Tomie blinked once her vision finally zeroed in on the guy in front of her- he looked familiar. 

She shook her head, it can’t be-Tom was dead, she couldn't help but struggle against the fog of cryo sleep. She looked down at her hands, she couldn't believe it's been 6 years, and she hasn't aged. Her hand still looked like that of a 20 year old. 

Tomie is one of the youngest people on the plane, she fidgeted, most of the people that were heading to Pandora are either in their late twenties to late thirties, and she was just turned 20 and was still in college. 

Tomie was lucky enough that her college participated in the RDA scholarship, allowing Tomie Takahashi to apply, win the money and an internship involving studies in regards to Pandora. Which meant traveling to the elusive planet, you see on Tv every day since you were born. 

Tomie remembered it just like it was yesterday. The email came in and she saw that she won the scholarship, she remembered sprinting through the busy streets of Kyoto, stomping her way up the hospital stairs to break the news to her mother, and they collapsed into a hug. 

Her mother was very proud. 

“Exo-packs on! Let's go!” the flight assistant shouted. 

He walked in front of the short girl. 

“Remember, people, you lose that mask, you will become unconscious in twenty seconds, then you're dead in four minutes!” he turns around and looks out the emergency exit that was beside the young girl. The assistant seems to have gone through this many times. 

Tomie craned her neck to look out the gray emergency exit door but could barely reach the window. 

The plane shook.

The young girl grumbled at herself, she wished she got the seat that looked out at the window, she heard many stories of pandora. The lush greenery,the blue clear sky and the bioluminescent life the light up the night. But instead she got shoved with the rest of the scientist, against the wall, where the emergency door was. 

These crayon eaters have no clue what a fascinating world was being presented in front of them. They are only there for the money not the world. They are only there for the company RDA and they are only there for the unobtanium. But Tomie was the one to talk as she is here because of them and their scholarship.

The plane shook once more as it was descending into the lush greenery. She placed the exo-packs on her face fastening the straps around her head.

The flight assistant walked in front of her and shouted, “let nobody be dead today!” she couldn't help but look up at the man, “it looks very bad on my report.” Jesus, how many people didn't put on their mask? She felt her ears pop as the plane landed on to the runway. Tomie quickly realized that this wasn't a normal plane skidding across the runway back at home, this plane descended straight from the air and onto the tarmac. So the feeling of her stomach was her throat, along with her heart and other organs. She heard hissing from the engine from outside the emergency exit door. 

Once again, Tomie tried to crane her neck to look at the door, but she was met with gray skies. Did it rain in Pandora? 

Tomie shook her head, Yes! 

It's a planet so similar to earth and the amount of lush greenery that inhabits this earth, it would make sense that this planet or moon would have some form of weather system. 

The man across from her chuckled and shook his head, she whipped her head around and glared at him. 

Once they finally touched down, the flight assistants stood off against the wall and began barking orders, at the marines and the scientist that were sitting down and strapped in. “ Harnesses off!” The man beside began to shout, he walked around with a dull gray clipboard, which somehow shouted “authority!” the people around he began scrambling to unbuckle and fumble out of their seats. “ Put it together, let's go! Lets go!” The flight assistant shouted from down the line. 

Tomie unbuckled her seatbelt and looked ahead of her, the man that was chuckling at her was taking his time. She wondered what could be slowing him down. 

Should she wait? 

Tomie reached under the seat, the metal part of the seatbelt was poking her in the back. What an unpleasant welcome.

“Harnesses off in one minute!'' 

Tomie couldn't help roll her eyes at the men barking orders. She swung her bag onto her back. And stood up. her legs were right next to the man, who was right across from her and she noticed that he was now the only one sitting, the man looked around, blue-ish eyes shifted around in annoyance. As he jutted a bright yellow wheelchair out from under him. Tomie felt bad for glaring at him and thinking that he looked weaker than the others.

So Tomie did what was best. 

She stepped off to the side, letting the person behind go ahead in front of her. She closely looked at the man, before feeling her face tingles in realization. “Are you Tom?”

The man's face looked up at the young girl. “No, I'm Jake, Tom’s my twin brother.” he fiddled with the jankey wheelchair. “Gah.” he looked back up at the girl. “Can you help unfold the wheel chair.”

Tomie nooded. “ Oh Yeah.” The short girl jiggled the wheel chair, hoping it would let the bars unfold, revealing a seat, like those chairs you would bring to watch the fourth of July fireworks. With one last shake, a horrendous yellow wheelchair unfolded. “Here you go.” 

“Thank you.” Jake lifted himself into the wheelchair. “

The girl stared at him. “ I have a question. You don't have to answer Jake.” Tomie looked around. “Wasn't Tom supposed to be here?” 

Jake nodded. “ I don't mind you asking. He was mugged and he died.”

Tomie blinked. 

She didn't know how to respond to that. “Oh.” This was the first time Tomie was hearing of Tom’s death. The young girl looked away from Jake for a quick second, blinking in rapid succession to keep the tears at bay, she was already sensitive about the “recent” death of her mother. Tom was Tomie’s mentor, once she won the RDA scholarship, and had to independently learn Na’vi, the people, the plants and the planet in general. Tomie would admit that she was extremely thankful for Tom and his help because if it weren’t for him, she wouldn’t have made it through the evaluation the deemed you worthy of going on this trip. 

Tomie sucked in a deep breath before turning back to Jake, “I’m sorry for your loss.”

Jake smiled, “it's ok.” 

The flight assistant ahead in his grey jumpsuit began speaking. “ When that ramp comes down, go directly into the base. Do not stop.” He pulled his exo-pack over his face. “ go straight inside, and wait for my mark!” 

The plane door opened with a low hiss.

The bright fog lights shone on top of the building lit up the dark plane. The marines began trotting to the compound. 

Tomie and Jake looked at each other. “I'll stay behind with you, not because, you know, you're the only person I talked to in six years. “ Tomie jokes. 

Jake chuckled, he swung his bag onto the back of the wheelchair. “Same here, except that I don't know your name. He looked at the bag that rested on her shoulder, which had her name tag sewn in by the courtesy of her mother. “Tommy?’ 

Tomie exhaled, she saw it coming, “ it's pronounced Tome-me-ey.” The girl explained.

“Ah! Nice to meet you Tomie.” Jake extended his hand out.

“And it's nice to meet you Mr.Jake.” Tomie smiled, she shook her hand. 

Ah yes! A friend made, she internally fist pumped.

One side of the plane was now empty and the scientists were now running behind the marines. “ keep moving Let’s go, Lets go!“ 

Tomie looked at the damp pavement ahead of her. It didn't look so different from earth. She looked at Jake, “I think we should start moving.”

Jake nodded in agreement, “ I'm right there with ya.” Tomie began walking out of the plane, the man in the wheelchair pushing behind her. The flight assistant looked at Jake, who was rolling as quick as he could, and began barking at him . “Let's go special case! Do not make me wait for you!” 

Tomie couldn't help but glare at the flight assistant. The flight assistant caught Tomie glaring at him. 

Tomie was a whole foot shorter than as she was only 4 '11 and weighed 110 pounds.She couldn't help but feel intimidated by the tall man towering over, using his height to assert dominance over those who were smaller than him in more particular Tomie. “ Come on princess, keep your eyes on the road!” 

Tomie whipped around and looked at Jake, like his wife would do when the mother-in-law said something extremely passive aggressive. 

Jake did nothing but shrug. 

He seemed to be used to being verbally-abused. Tomie has never been called a princess before, not in bed and not in an insulting way. Tomie whipped ahead around and quickly walked across the ramp with her eyes looking down at the light gray tarmac. She felt someone grab her arm and pull her back, she whipped around to see who it was. It was Jake, and he was not staring at her but staring past her, at the large lush jungle. The aura of the jungle, is as tangible as water when one bathes. It is another sense, one that comes to the heart rather than the eyes, as soaked in richness as they are. And it reached out to her, it called for her, it beckoned her. She dreamed of this for a very long time, from the moment she realized that lush greenery on the television screen was on a planet far, far away, and when she saw the star on top of the hill.

A large whirring sound filled her ears, she looked over at the giant mining haul truck, it was dirty and beaten up, the wheels rolled by, the arrows or spears for that matter sticking out. She couldn't help but let out an audible “woah…” but the ‘awe’ diminished as she looked back down at the dull gray Hell’s Gate, which is filled with a familiar feeling of smog against her skin. Maybe out there in the jungle, it was sunny but here, Tomie looked up at the sky, the smog was definitely blocking the effect of the sun. 

Jake laughed a “Yeah.” he shook his head in amazement. How could things be so big here? It was like the saying everything's bigger in Texas but on crack because everything's bigger in Pandora.

The pair began moving towards the compound, the three military men stood out in front of the gated tunnel, stared at the two making their way down. It was more likely they were staring at Jake as he was wheelchair bound. The two got closer and the marines that were standing made it their business to stare at Jake. Tomie couldn't help but feel she was being stared at, as their body shifted in the moving direction Jake and Tomie. Tomie looked ahead ignoring their gazes. While Jake stared back at the two bald men. “ what are limp dicks staring at?” Jake snapped. 

The tall white bald man tilted his head, and retorted “ staring at you stumpy.” 

Jake rolled his eyes and moved along past the two guys. 

Tomie stood waiting underneath the fenced tunnel watching with an amused expression. 

Jake nodded at Tomie as he rolled up next to her. “ what a bunch of assholes.” Tomie scoffed in agreement. A loud chirping-like call followed by a green and purple creature jutting its tail through the chain-link fence, its tail represented a scorpion, it was poisonous, no doubt. 

Jake pushed Tomie behind him.

“ Holy shit! It's a stingbat!” Tomie shouted from behind Jake. 

Jake looked around hurriedly for anything to ward off the sting bat attack, it stuck its head in through the chain link fence hiding and calling revealing many rows of translucent sharp teeth. 

Bang! 

Bang! 

Tomie jumped at the sound and she watched the creature fall to the ground. Tomie and Jake stared at it. Before turning to look at the person who shot the stingbat.

It was the bald man, he shook his head, the gun in his hand still extended aiming at the dead winged hexapod. “Look I’ve seen a lot of guys leave this place in a wheelchair…” His face grew into a smirk, “I've never seen anyone show up in one.” he smiled as he looked at Jake. 

“Let's just go inside.” Tomie said, looking at the marine. Jake nodded and began wheeling off to the compound and Tomie followed.

The compound was filled with people and Tomie was just happy to take her mask off and breath without feeling the air go back in her face. Like seriously who designed these masks? She finally arrived at the debriefing room, she was going to wait for Jake get himself situated but she didn’t want to miss the debriefing as she never attended one.

“You are on Pandora, Ladies and Gentlemen.” the man with white hair and green camis walked up to the front of the room. His back was faced to everyone, “ Respect that fact, every second of every day.” He looked to the right, Tomie caught a glimpse of three claw marks running to the crown of his head. She couldn't tell how long it was. But she could tell that the man means serious business. “ If there is a hell, you might wanna go there for some R&R, after a tour on Pandora.” 

The girl looked around her surroundings.The room was segregated between scientists on one side of the room and marines on the other side of the room. The girl couldn't help but be reminded of a late 20th century show she liked to watch, “Friends”. Where in the episode, Joey was hired to work as tour guide in the museum where Ross was a scientist at and the museum tour guides and the scientist did not sit with each other. This situation totally reminded her of that.

It was so petty that humans could be so divided over simple things like job titles. Tomie couldn't help but smile at the thought of an old TV show, she has always been a sucker nostalgia. She turned to look at the man, who was now pointing out the window, out at Pandora’s jungle, “ Out there, beyond that fence, every living thing that crawls, flies, or squats in the mud…” he turns around finally revealing the full length of the scar. Tomie couldn't help but stop smiling. This man definitely means serious business. “...Wants to kill you and eat your eyes for jujubes.” 

“ we have an indgenous population of humanoids called the Na’vi…” Tomie felt someone roll up next to her. 

She turned her head to see Jake. “ Hey.” she whispered. He nodded his head in acknowledgement and stared ahead at that man in front, captivated by his debriefing of Pandora. “ They are fond of arrows dipped in a neurotoxin that'll stop your heart in one minute. And they have bones reinforced with naturally occuring carbon fiber. They are very hard to kill.” 

The man with the scar looked at Jake.

“As head of security, It is my job to keep you alive.” He turned back around to continue his pacing, as he looked out at the window, with helicopters flying in the distance. “I will not succeed. Not with all of you, if you want to survive, you need to cultivate a strong mental attitude. You got to obey the rules. Pandora rules.” he turned back around at his audience, his chest held up proud. 

Tomie couldn't help but zone out, there was nothing like an old school lecture to lull you to sleep but she swore that if she fell asleep that man would not let her wake up.

After the debriefing was done. Jake seemed to be calmer after the meeting and Tomie walked with a sleepy daze on her face, she was wondering when the fun stuff was going to happen. She walked along Jake, heading towards the dorms. “ Excuse me. Excuse me. Jake!” Tomie turned around to see a tall lanky man, with a long face. “ you’re Jake, right? Tom’s brother.” Jake looked at the man. He shook his head and said “ wow, you look just like him.” he extended his hand out, “ Sorry, i’m Norm. Spellman. I went through avatar training with him.” 

“ Nice to meet you. “ Jake said with formality. 

“Hey Tomie, I heard you’re the infamous scholarship kid.”

Tomie nodded. “Yep.”

Norm’s face exploded with delight. “ Wow! You must be really smart, You know I applied for the scholarship so I could come here early, but I got rejected and had to wait until I graduated but you, Wow! Do you know whose the other one is?”

The young girl shook her head. 

Tomie couldn't help but feel her cheeks become red and heated. “So what school do you attend? I mean with that scholarship, you get immediate acceptances into the Ivy Leagues!” 

Jake looked at Tomie’s red face. You can tell she is not one for attention towards her academic success. “I attend Yale University.”

“Yale! I heard they have fantastic labs. What are you majoring in?” Norm inquired. 

Tomie smiled. “ I’m a neuroscience major and a minor in biology.” 

The trio rounded the corner.They finally arrived at the science department of the compound, “Well speaking of biology, into the Bio-lab!” Norm chuckled in excitement. 

Tomie's eyes widen in fascination at the sight of the lab. The clear screen showing neural networks firing with each glowing dot at the cell body and the gentle glow of the bioluminescent plant that glowed underneath the hood.

“We are going to spend a lot of time up here.” Norm rubs his hand together in excitement. Tomie looked around at the blue screens and pipets. Jake looked around taking in everything, since everything was so foriegn. 

The two followed Norm since he knew where to go. “Hey! How are you doing? Norm, avatar driver.” The lanky boy said to the scientists. He was like a kid in a candy shop. Norm pointed to a room, “ Link room, This where we’re connecting to our avatar.” Tomie looked towards the link room, seeing a bunch of instruments that look like MCAT scanners. But Norms voice trailed off as he looked at what Jake was seeing the Avatars. 

Tomie quickly ran up to catch up with the boys. She was met with blue glowing capsules and her face morphed into awe, almost as if she was mimicking Norm and Jake. Tomie looked down the rows of glowing cyan capsules with 9-10 foot giant avatar bodies floating in them like fetuses in utero- which almost looked fully grown. Tomie walked to the only female avatar’s capsule. She stared at her, the blue light reflected off of Tomie’s black hair, her lips slightly drawn open and her dark brown eyes peered around curiously as she looked at the blue body. She looked like her, she is her, technically she has the same DNA as her. So, basically, the avatar was her blue twin. Tomie strolled up to her face, her eyes were closed, her long lashes rested on her cheeks. Tomie inspected the female avatar’s face- she had a very feminine face, like her. The young girl pressed her hand against the glass, the avatar flinched at the new stimuli.

Tomie let out a squeak

“Hey, scholarship kid, did she scare you.”

Tomie nodded. “yeah.”

“They have active reflexes but no indication of being sentient.” The scientist explained.

“Oh, that's so cool.” Tomie said, she tilted her head to the side, her dark eyes filled with stars, staring at the avatar, at her avatar. It looked just like her but not, it was like she was wearing a mask but with her face, it held similar features, like her elongated forehead, small jaw and her narrow nose bridge and her doe-like eye shape, Tomie tilted her head to other side, her side profile was like hers minus the human nose bridge that was more like a ski-slope than straight- down slide like the indigenous people on Pandora. The avatar made her more like the indigenous humanoid of Pandora, the Na’vi. Tomie couldn't help but notice the glowing specks that glittered her cheeks and the top of her nose bridge all over her body forming a swirl on some parts of her body like around her thighs and around her elbows. Tomie frowned with jealousy, god, her avatar had more of a nose bridge than she does. However, Tomie couldn't help but feel excited for the decanting.

* * *

~ Chapter 2 Preview ~

“Hey, Tomie, are you excited?” he lifted the lid open. 

Tomie stared at the machine, “Excited? More like nervous.”

Max chuckled, “Don't be.” The scientist turned to the screen next to the bed. Tomie situated herself into the mint green cushion foam. He brought down the metal interface that aids the psionic link technology. The young girl felt her beat fast and she let out an exhale. Max held the lid of the link unit. “Just relax and let your mind go blank.” 

Tomie smiled, “Ok, I’ll try.” and with that Max lowered the lid down. It was dark, Tomie took some calming deep breaths and let herself relax and with that she closed her eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomie finally arrives to Pandora its everything she expected and not. Can't you imagine that preparing for a year and more, be constantly shone images of a lush and elusive jungle of Pandora, to travel across the galaxy to be greeted with the horrid gray Hell's Gate. What a cosmic joke! Exactly how the American College admission process is like. But, luckily the avatars restored her hope.


	3. A Neuroscience Major And An Exo-Geology Major Walked into A Bar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tomie finally met her roommate and Dr. Grace Augustine, and now dreads next the next six years to come.

Tomie clutched her keycard in her hands. She peered around the corner of the gray dingy residence hall. It was not as crowded as it was by the SecOps or over down by the science hall or by the “chow hall” which some military men call it or the cafeteria which normal people call it like the scientists and the data analysis people. She looked down at her keycard, the white lettering in bold in R-D-A stood against the blue key card. She looked at the bottom which gave the room number, which was a similar shade of blue as the key card but darker. The short girl stepped off to the side and placed her bag on the ground, she gripped the key card and squinted at it- L2R23.

Level 2, room 23!

Tomie swung her bag over her shoulder. She was already on level 2 because level 1 is where the cafeteria is and the common meeting ground and what links the other parts of the compound to the residence halls. Tomie walked down and looked at the silver plaques screwed on the walls next to the industrial blue doors. 

Room 19

Room 21

  
  


Ah! Room 23! Tomie brought her key card and inserted it into the lock. The door clicked open and she pushed it open. She was met with a girl with blond hair, big blue eyes, enlarged by a pair of thick frames resting on her crooked nose which seemingly complimented her round face. She looked surprised at the arrival of Tomie before smiling, “You must be my roommate?” she said. She had a slight southern drawl.

The short girl nodded. “Yeah, my name is Tomie Takahashi.” Tomie hurriedly shoved her key card in her pocket and extended her hand out for a handshake.

The blonde girl blinked, before scrunching her nose, pushing her glasses up. “Oh.” She set down one of her books on her desk. She looked down at Tomie’s hand and her piercing blue eyes studied Tomie, before meeting Tomie’s brown eyes, “Where’s my manner, my name is Phoebe Cosbi.” She remained unmoving form her desk letting Tomie lok stupid with her hand extended out.

Tomie felt her ears get hot with embarrassment. The next six years are going to suck! Tomie closed the door to their dorm room and studied it. The room was small, there was two beds that rested on top of a horizontal two-drawer dresser, most likely to save space. She looked to her side of the room, the empty side, essentially. There was a bedside table with an industrial looking lamp, with another drawer. And at the foot of the bed was the desk. It was gray and looked cool to the touch paired with a bookshelf. Tomie sighed and slung her bag down to the floor and zipped it open and began unpacking.

Phoebe sat at her desk, occasionally looking at Tomie as she unpacked her clothes, setting them up gently on the bed. The blonde girl furrowed her eyes as Tomie pulled out a heavy purple textbook with a blue x-rayed brain with a light green translucent neuron firing away. She straightened her back, “That's an undergraduate neuroscience book? Are you a scholarship recipient?” 

Tomie paused, “yeah…”

“Me too!” she exclaimed, “ I'm studying exo-geology and i'm here to learn about the rocks but more importantly unobtanium.” she raised her eyebrows, “duh.” She leaned back in her chair, making it squeak under her weight, “I'm guessing your neuroscience?”

Tomie finished setting up her desk. “Yeah, I also do Biology.” 

Phoebe raised her eyebrows, giving an air of impressed. “ So who's your advisor?”

“It's Dr.Grace Augstine.”

Phoebe chuckled, “The plant lover? My advisor is Parker Selfridge, I am working with him to study unobtanium. I was supposed to be apart of the Avatar program but I didn't get it. I doubt you got it.” She leaned forwards, resting her chin on the palm of her hand, “ I mean, it would evil if the god gave me a roommate apart avatar program. Maybe the other scholarship recipient got in?”

Tomie nodded, keeping her mouth shut. She pulled a thin book out from the bottom of her bag, she looked at it, it was a classic, “Run, Melos!” in a muted red at the top of the book, with a Grecian boy running on the cover. She remembered her mother reading it to her and her reading it to her mother. She placed it on her bedside table.

“Tomie, you shouldn't be so heavy handed on the eyeliner.”

Tomie felt her shoulder slump. It's only been two hours since she had her as roommate, and the sound of her voice resembled nails on a chalkboard.

* * *

Tomie, Norm and Jake followed Max in the link room to meet Dr.Grace Augustine, the main scientist of the whole place. And she was the one to approve of the scholarships. However Jake didn't know who Grace Augustine was,and rightfully so, but it spurred a rant from Norm who went on tirade about what an awe-spiring person she was. “...I mean she literally wrote the book on Pandorian Botany.” 

Max turns back to Norm, “That ‘cause she likes plants better than people.” They walked around the control panel, “ here she is Cinderella back from the ball.” His indian accent became more noticable. “Grace, I’d like you to meet Norm Spellman, Jake Sully, and Tomie Takahashi” he gestured to us. 

Grace turned around, looking at the three new avatar drivers. Her red hair matched the glow of the cigarette as she took a drag. She turned her attention towards Norm, “Norm. I heard good things about you. How’s your Na’vi?”

Tomie's eyes widened. Pop Quiz! She just began studying Na’vi, she can estimate that she is as good as a child when it comes to speaking the language. 

Norm took a deep breath as he began speaking Na’vi, _ “May the all Mother…”  _ he slightly bows his head in greeting, _ “ ...smile upon our first meeting.” _

Grace nodded as she responded, “ Not bad. You sound a little formal.”

Norm chuckled. “I studied for five years..” he fidgeted with the straps of his bag, “ But there is much to learn.” 

Grace smiled and turned her attention to Tomie. Tomie felt her heartbeat increase. “Takahashi, How is your Na’vi?”

Tomie ransacked her brain for the correct grammatical structure to speak this language, she didn't want to speak the wrong language or the wrong grammatical structure but all what turned up was japanese grammatical structure paired with the Na’vi language, she cursed her bilingual brain. Ah Fuck it! _ “I struggle at times, but do not worry as I am learning quickly…”  _ Tomie paused thinking for better words, _ “I, uh, thank you for choosing me to be a part of the Avatar Program.” _

“You will have plenty of time to learn while you are here, don't worry, and I expect great things from you Tomie.” Grace said. At this moment Tomie's cheeks became a light shade of pink and she beamed. She is comparable to a labrador puppy getting high praises and was wagging her tail at 5 miles an hour.

“Grace?” Max interrupted. “This is Jake Sully.” Once again introducing him.

Jake outreached his hand towards her, with a respectful “ma’am” 

She, however, doesn't look too impressed by Jake’s presence. “Yeah, Yeah. I know who you are,” she shoots down Jake's greeting and handshake, “ and I don't need you. I need your brother.” She turns to Max. “ you know, the PhD who trained for three years for this mission?”

“He’s dead.” Jake said looking at Grace. “I know it's a big inconvenience for everyone.” he shook his head in annoyance. 

Grace took a step forward, “ How much lab training have you had?”

“I dissected a frog once.” he leaned back in his wheelchair. 

The red head turned back to Max, “You see? You see? I mean, they’re just pissing on us without even the courtesy of calling it rain.” she spat. She turned away from the new avatar drivers, “ i'm going to Selfridge.” 

Max chased after her with a resounding’ “ No, Grace..” he scurried up the stairs,I dont think thats a good idea.”

She threw her hands in the air and slammed down on the railing, “ No, man, this is such bullshit!” she stormed off out the link room shouting, “i'm gonna kick his corporate butt .He has no business sticking his nose in my department.”

Max turned around, with his head hanging low, he approached Jake, “here tomorrow, 0800.” try and use big words.” 

It was the next morning and the scientists were cleaning out the giant tubes that once held the avatar bodies. They now laid out stretched on the gurney. The trio strolled into the link room following Grace. “So, how much link time have logged?” Grace asked.

Norm immediately responded with “ about 520 hours.”

“That's good.” Grace turned the shorter girl who was struggling to keep up with the pace with her short legs, her long ponytail swished as she practically trotted. “What bout’ you, Tomie?”

Tomie rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly, “about 120 hours.”

Grace nooded. “That is below average, but considering that you had a year to prepare, it's good enough.” Grace reasoned. That was the first time Tomie was considered below average, in fact she was above average. She couldn't help but hang her head in shame. Grace pointed to the link chamber.

“Hey, Tomie, are you excited?” he lifted the lid open. 

Tomie stared at the machine, “Excited? More like nervous.”

Max chuckled, “Don't be.” The scientist turned to the screen next to the bed. Tomie situated herself into the mint green cushion foam. He brought down the metal interface that aids the psionic link technology. The young girl felt her beat fast and she let out an exhale. Max held the lid of the link unit. “Just relax and let your mind go blank.” 

Tomie smiled, “Ok, I’ll try.” and with that Max lowered the lid down. It was dark, Tomie took some calming deep breaths and let herself relax and with that she closed her eyes.

She hears something, voices. It is like she was coming out of a tunnel. She opened her eyes, the room was blurry, she could make out colors of light green, blue and white. Tomie squeezed her eyes shut and opened it again, the image before her was becoming more focused and crystal clear like a camera adjusting. This was like when you were waking up from cryo-sleep. Tomie looked up, “Tomie, can you hear me?” the voice sounded distant like at the end of the tunnel 

The man shone a light in her face, “Pupillary reflex is good.” Then she heard snapping in her ears. It seemed crisper than she remembered. The woman spoke up” Pinna's response is normal. How are you feeling Tomie?” 

“I'm feeling, pretty good.” Tomie laughed out, she can't believe this was happening. Did this just happen? Did she experience the miracles of psiioniic technology? 

The tech laughed, “ Welcome to your new body, Tomie.” The female avatar driver raised her hands, they were big hands! Blue! With stripes! Oh my gosh! Tomie's eyes widened in amazement. This can't be happening, she propped herself on her elbows and looked at her feets, they were blue, with stripes! Just like her hands The tech seemed satisfied by how Tomie is taking to her sensory and her new body. Tome sat straight up. She looked over at the next bed, it seemed that Jake was now coming out of it.

“Tomie, I want you to pay attention to me.” the female tech said. She snapped her attention back to the tiny tech.

Tomie looked down at her, “Woah, i'm so tall!” Tomie couldn't but laugh in amazement. She raised her hand up, inspecting her striped hands, studying the bioluminescent dots on her hand, like fiance admiring her ring. 

“Yes, you are, Tomie. I want you to touch all of your fingers with your thumb like this.” Tomie blinked and nodded.

She held her blue hands up, and began touching her pinkie finger to her thumbs, then her ring finger, then her middle finger and her rpointer… 

She heard clashing and whipped round. There was avatar Jake standing on his two feet, not even five minutes after waking up. 

Tomie couldn't help but laugh at the spectacle, her weight canine reflecting the light. Jake really had no idea what he was in for but at the end he received to function legs and was ready to use them. “

“Jake! Listen to me. Jake!” The techs began calling out, waving their arms about.

“Woah.” Jake called out, trying to balance on his two feet.

“Sedate! Sedate Him! A thousand milligrams of Supitocam! Stat!” the male tech that was attending Jake shouted. Both Tomie and Norm looked at each other and back at Jake who had this wild look on his face. Tomie couldn't but grin in excitement. She was ready to see where this would go.

Jake pushed the door open. “ Dude, I have to follow him.” Tomie quickly pulled off the leads off her forehead and quickly ran after Jake. Jake opened the second door, exposing his new body to the Pandorian air. Tomie stepped outside, the feeling the dirt beneath her feet in her new body. She felt her heart beat fast in exhilaration. Tomie looked up ahead and saw Jake running. She stood there, feeling the clean air fill her lungs, a feeling she has never felt before. She felt something bump into and a meek “i’m sorry” ensued. It was avatar Norm. He was running after Jake.Maybe she could go for a run. And that she did. She placed one foot in front of the other quickly catching up to the boys who were conversing with Grace.

“Grace?” Tomie called out.

She smiled revealing her pointed teeth, “The one only.” she grabbed a fruit off a plant and tossed it. “Here try this.”

Tomie caught the purple fruit, she held it up to her face, inspecting it.. She looked at Jake, whose face was covered in the juices. “Try it.” 

“Ok.” Tomie took a bite of the fruit, her pupils dialated at the new flavor, juices ran down the side of her cheeks and her mouth bursting with flavor. “Whoa! I never tasted anything like it” 

“I know right.” Jake agreed, he was wiggling his bare feet in the soil.

“Hey guys!” Tomie, Grace and Jake looked at Norm, who popped out from behind the bushes that held the purple fruit. “Check it out!” he brought his arm together to flex his muscles, “I am a living god!” he swung his arm around, flexing his biceps and triceps, “Hehehe, Look at this...” Nomr took a step closer to the trio that was watching his antics, “ This amazing-” Norm tripped over a slight depression in the ground but quickly jumped up, he waved his arms around while Grace chuckled. “It's ok, I'm good.” 

“I like how we are still in our hospital gowns.” Tomie stated. “There's a nice breeze.” she grabbed back of her hospital gown and held it shut.

Grace chuckled, “ Oh, ya, we’ll fix that up for right away.” 

The new Avatar drivers spend the rest of their day in their new bodies. Playing a mean game of basketball, walking the avatar compound with Grace and wearing clothes that are a size seventeen XL, which Tomie didn't know existed but she digressed. The trio once again entered the avatar compound, the place was lined with really long cots, surrounded by netting, coupled with a really tall vaulted ceiling to accommodate the tall blue people. Tomie laid down on her cot, her head rested on her pillow and her long black hair brushed over her shoulders, she stared at the ceiling and closed her eyes.

And the next time she opened her eyes, she was met with the lid of the link bed, she sighed. Everything just seems duller by her brain’s new standard and experience. She felt very out of place and maye if she slept, that would help to restart her brain. She lifted the lid and was met with a very somber Jake, who was back in his wheelchair and wheeled off with no word. Tomie looked at the time. It was dinner time and Tomie was very exhausted, mentally exhausted. She walked out of the link and started heading towards the dorm room, so she could sleep.

“Hey, Tomie!” Grace called after her. Tomie stopped in her tracks and looked at Grace, who was standing in front of the Link room entrance, “The cafeteria is this way.” 

“Oh, I'm not hungry, I'm just sleepy.” Tomie responded sheepishly.

The doctor gave her a look and raised her eyebrows, “You need to eat.” she placed her hands on hips, “doctors order.” she said jokingly. “And I need to talk to you about your scholarship.” 

Tomie raises her eyebrows, “ you do?”

“Yes, You've been here for two days, and you already drove your avatar and we have not even talked about your scholarship. So let's talk about it over dinner.”

“Ok.'' Tomie followed after the redhead lady in the cafeteria, after they got their food, and they sat down away from the scientist. Grace took a sip of her water before beginning, “Your scholarship states that you will complete the last year of university here under my guidance. I am expecting you to apply your knowledge of neuroscience here “

Tomie nodded. “My professors are allowing me to independently study neuroscience and biology and still receive my degree.” Tomie explained. “And I have a pretty good idea how neuroscience can apply to the biology of Pandora, ” Tomie explained.

“See, this is what made your application standout, against all the other applications I reviewed, usually all stem based and for monetary gain. And this earned your spot in the avatar program.” Grace said. “What made you apply to this program?”

“My mom.” Tomie pushed her cafeteria food around the metal spork, “my mom was an anthropologist and in love with the world beyond earth, it's more like an ode to her, because she raised me with the same ideas and knowledge of the universe beyond us. She couldn't go to Pandora, because she had me. So she stayed on earth studying human anthropology. ” 

Grace smiled,“ See you tomorrow, we are going outside the Hell’s gate to explore Pandora’s rain forest and gather some samples.”

“Really?!” Tomie stood up in excitement. The whole cafeteria looked at the excited young girl.

“Yes, now sit down.” the red head beckoned at her. “ See you in the link room tomorrow morning.”

* * *

~ Chapter 4 Preview ~  
  


Tomie followed him to see these giant coral-like plants, with spirals going into the ground and fanning upwards. Tomie scurried up to Jake and she too was filled with curiosity. Jake’s left one hand of the gun and reached forward touching the peach plant, which immediately shrunk into itself. Jake jumps back bumping into Tomies, gasping. Tomie looked at Jake and back at the now gone planet, and chuckled. Both Jake and Tomie looked at each other and back at Grace who was too busy talking about plants the psionic interfaces the plants have. Tomie took a step forward, standing ahead of Jake wanting to touch the peach plants, there was nothing in her studies stating what type of plant this was, so she could understand the “cool-ness” of these plants. She reached out with her index finger and touched it,the plant shrunk and she jumped back laughing. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kinda glossed over some things in this chapter but next chapter is pretty wordy and I still need to add a couple scenes in there, so it going to take a while to update, but hopefully I will be able to upload it sometimes next week.


	4. The Great Thanator Chase

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The longest chapter so far!! I had already written this chapter and spent all week editing it and revising it. I need to find a better way to edit because I got bored and left it at that and then when I would return, I would forget my place. Anyways, finally some Tsu'tey and Tomie interactions! For the next couple of chapters or more, I will be following Tsu'tey's Path, with introduction of the two characters such as Saeyla and Ka'ani.

Beep!

Beep!

  
  


A hand extended out pressing the top of the alarm clock, snoozing for the next five minutes. The young girl opened her eyes and was met with industrial pipes above her, creaking and shaking above her. The warmth of the bed was fleeting as she rolled over and coldness greeted her. She shivered at the coolness of the pumped the artificial oxygen that blew above her. She felt the heaviness of her eyelids begging her to close her eyes. It was day 3 on Pandora, in Hell’s Gate, which is literal hell! Tomie rolled over to her arm and looked at her roommate's bed, which was empty and perfectly made, like she didn't sleep in there. She sighed with relief as she didn't have to deal with her in the morning. Tomie rubbed her puffy eyes and flipped onto her stomach, stuffing her face into the pillow, groaning. She wasn't exactly a morning person, and the mental fatigue didn't seem to wash away after the first session of using the avatar, she hoped it would go away after more experience and time with usiTomie propped her chin on the pillow. Peering slightly to the left, looking out the window to see the sky. Pandora didn't exactly get very dark as the night sky seemed to resemble an earthly dusk.

Beep! 

Beep!

The alarm went off once again and Tomie sat right up, throwing her comforter off her and unplugging the alarm. She swung her feet over the bed, and slid her clothed feet into her slipper and quickly squatted down to her dresser and pulled out her clothes for the day, quickly slipped on jeans and pulled her head through her t-shirt, her bangs bounced as she slipped her arms through her sleeves. She turned around to face the mirror that hung over her roommates bed, and gave herself a smile, mentally taking a picture of what she is wearing, what she looks like for this big momentous day, It has been a couple days and she is already going out on expedition with Dr.Grace Augustine, Norm Spellman and Jake Sully out into the Pandorian forest. Some people spend weeks, months, years and some never step outside of the compound or on the pavement of Hell’s Gate. Tomie quickly looked to her alarm clock. Shit! Breakfast is almost over. Tomie grabbed her keycard and ran out of her room and down to the crowded cafeteria. She quickly grabbed the metal bowl of cereal, a carton of milk and a spork and sat down at the end of the table next to Jake who was at the furthest end at the table, not talking to anybody. “ Hey Jake, feeling like the outsider already?”

Jake gave an awkward chuckle, “Yeah, I don't even understand what they are talking about.” he pushed the grit around on the metal tray.

Tomie laughed, “They are talking about polypeptides, which is invol-”

“Hey...” A girl in a half-unzipped army green flight suit and a low ponytail interrupted, “...You're Sully?” she questioned.

Tomie took a bite of her cereal, staring at the conversation in between the army chick and Jake. Jake's eyes shifted back from Tomie, who just looked at him with her eyebrows raised, and back to the military chick. “Hm?”

“Colonel wants to see you in the army bay…” She walked around Jake’s wheelchair, “C’mon.” she pulls on the handlebars on the wheelchair.

“Jake, your food!” Tomie called out.

“I'll be back.” He called back over the loud clattering and chattering,

“Ugh!” she stared at him, as she rolled away with a ponytail.

She turned back to her cereal.

She heard someone slide across from her. Tomie looked up to find a guy with floppy black hair, sharp brown eyes, and a gray button up looking straight at her. “Im Jae…” He extended his hand outwards, “Jae Park.” he placed the white hardhat on top of the table. 

Tomie grabbed his hand and shook it, “Nice to meet you Jae, i'm Tomie, Tomie Takahashi.”

“Yeah, I figured, you're the other scholarship recipient.”

“Are you a scholarship recipient?” Tomie asked, she pushed around the floating colorful wheat in the sea of milk. 

“Yes, i'm here for computer programming and electrical engineering. I'm shadowing the people that keep this whole establishment, base, place running.” Jae explained.

“That explains the hat.” Tomie gestured to the unscuffed white hardhat on top of the hard lunch table. The scientist at the table kept looking at Jake before shifting back to their conversation.

“Yeah, so you're the one who got accepted into the Avatar Program.” Jae said.

Tomie smiled sheepishly, “Yeah…”

“I figured, after Phoebe asked me…” His eyes shifted upwards in remembrance before looking back at the short girl, “...well, more like interrogated me.” 

Tomie made a face at Phoebe's name, “Oh, that means she knows it's me.”

Jae gave a sheepish smile, “Sorry, I exposed you.” 

“No…” Tomie shook her head, “... It's fine, I'll just face it when I get back to my room.” 

“You and Phoebe are roommates?” he asked with his eyebrows raised.

Tomie nodded.

Jae’s face twisted into an empathetic look aimed towards Tomie.

“I know…” she groaned.

“Takahashi!” The redhead doctor called from the head of the table. Tomie head whipped away from the conversation with Jae. She saw the team of scientists that usually controlled and ran the link room all standing up ready to leave the cafeteria. “Finish up with your flirting…”Tomie felt her face get warm. “...we are heading up to the link room.”

“Okay, Dr.Augustine!” Tomie called from the end of the table. She turned to Jae, “Im sorry, I gotta go.” Tomie stood up from her seat.

“It's ok, I'll take your bowl, go ahead.” Jae said, while grabbing the metal bowl.

“Thank you!” Tomie swung her foot over the seat and slightly stumbled before finding her footing. She was getting used to the new gravity “See you later.” 

“You too!” Jae called from his seat, cleaning up her breakfast and grabbing the hardhat.

Tomie hurried up to the group. “ Grace, what about Jake?” As the herd of scientists began moving out of the cafeteria and into the corridor.

“He’ll figure it out.” Grace placing the key-card against the card reader, and opening the doors to the lab. Tomie internally shivered at Grace’s coldness towards Jake. But Tomie couldn't help but understand Grace’s guarded wall against Jake. Jake was essentially the enemy, one of the military men and it didn't help the fact that ponytail told Jake in front of the scientist the colonel wanted to see him. The scientists diverged to the respectful spots in the lab. While Tomie and Norm followed Grace into the link room. The girl look around, the link room was a completely different atmosphere from the entire lab, the lab glowed blue and was dark as the scientists were studying panodorian life, which all shared the trait of bioluminescence, while in the link room, the room was illuminated with LED fluorescent lighting with a hint of green emitting from the link beds bordering the circular room. Grace stopped walking prompting Tomie and Norm to stop, she turned around, digging in her pocket and pulling out a cigarette, and lighting it and taking a drag, blowing the smoke out. Tomie couldn't help but internally grimace and feel her throat become scratchy. “I want you guys to begin packing for our expedition.” She gestured to the titanium table that sat against the cubicle which encompassed the centrifuge which was shaking the wall nearby. On the table, were these empty gigantic backpacks. 

Norm nudged Tomie, giving her a look of excitement. “I can't believe this is happening.” he muttered through his teeth.

Grace took another drag, “ Get packin’ we are leaving in an hour.”

“I got the stuff from the warehouse.” Max came into the room carrying a box, along with his assistants. He hoisted it up onto the table and his assistants followed in suit “Oi!” Max placed his hand on his lower back.

“Don't throw your back out Max.” Grace murmured through the cigarette in her mouth. 

Norm immediately opened the box revealing clothes and shoes and survival gear. Tomie hopped onto her tippy toes and peered into the box. She reached in and grabbed a pair of enormous hiking boots.

The door to the link room opened and rolled into the link. Norm’s back immediately straightened as Grace watched him roll up next to Tomie. The scientists were shooting looks at each other before resuming back to their work. Tomie lifted the shoe at Jake, “Look.” 

“Tomie, I need you to take pictures of the samples we observe today, so put down that shoe and pack the camera.” Grace said as she briskly walked by. Tomie handed the shoe to Norm who was packing the giant backpacks. Tomie shoved the giant camera in her bag, along other survival stuff, like a lighter. Tomie quickly zips the blue adventure bag, and looks at Jake who finished around the same time as she was.

“Guys we are in the flight line in 10 minutes.” Grace's voice called out. Tomie, Norm and Jake quickly fell in line, following Grace to the link machines. “ What did he want?” The red headed doctor aimed her question at Jake.

“Just marines comparing tattoos.” 

Grace stopped mid-step. She turned around, “Well, listen to me, Marine..” She took the cigertte out of her mouth. “You're driving in an Avatar now, that means your in my world.” She looked down at Jake. Tomie and Norm stood behind the sitting man, who was looking up at the intimidating doctor, “Got it?”

Jake nodded, “Got it. I'm here for you, like Tomie and Norm.”

“Don't drag me into this.” Tomie quickly said.

There was a moment of silence before Grace turned around and began walking into the room, the glided down the ramp that led into the circular link room, “That son of a bitch has done enough, all of this exists, so we can go out there and build a bridge of trust with these people. They could teach us so much.” Grace stopped walking and they arrived at the link machines. “But thanks to Quaritch and his thugs, the Na’vi won't even talk to us anymore...”

Tomie entered her side of the link which was in between Norm’s and Jake’s. Tomi went up to the keypad to get to enter the password and get it up and running. She looked at the glowing blue screen above which had her name at the lower left corner. Tomie lifted the lid to the bed and revealed the green gel bed. Tomie couldn't resist the urge to stick her finger in it, to feel the cool gel wrap around her finger. 

“And Tomie…”

The short girl jumped immediately drawing her finger out of the green gel. Tomie turned to see Grace standing next to her link machine. Grace pointed to her, “she's also non-threatening.”

Tomie gave Jake a sheepish smile before sitting down in the link machine and laid down.

“All three links are ready!” Max voice called out

The circular machine behind them started whining. Tomie reached up and pulled the lid down, the green gelled bed hugged her form, and the darkness was only counteracted with the glow of the breastplate that rested above her chest. Tomie closed her eyes and opened them. She looked up at the wooden support beams that held up the roofing of the avatar compound. Tomie took a deep breath feeling the clean air enter her lungs, it was not like the recycled oxygen in the compound or when you wore an exo-mask. It was refreshing. Tomie swung her legs over the cot, pushing aside the mosquito net that hung over the cot to protect the avatar bodies when being used. Tomie stood up, feeling quite dizzy at the change of height. She looked over to the cot next to hers and found Jake was not there. Tomie walked to the giant doors and pulled it open to find Grace with her arms crossed talking to the lab techs in the golf cart carrying the backpacks and other supplies. Jake and Norm were getting their hiking boots on.

“Tomie, here's your shoes over here.” Norm called out.

“Ok, Tomie walked over and plopped down onto the ground. “What's going on?” Tomie leaned forwards.

Jake looked over at the golf cart and slightly disgruntled Grace, “Apparently, there was a miscommunication about the expedition.”

Tomie peered over her shoulder and spotted a gun at the back of the golf cart. “Are you sure?” Tomie fastened the laces of her boot and stood straight up. “I'm pretty sure she's upset about the gun by your bag.” 

Jake stood up and looked at the golf cart. 

“You three, let's go.”

The trio followed Grace and the golfcart to the tarmac where the helicopter was. Tomie looked past the gray haze and saw the ponytail and the bald man. Are you kidding me?

“Alright guys, the pilot is Trudy Chacon and the guy by the door gun is Lyle Wainfleet, grab your bags and get on the helicopter.” 

And that they did. Tomie was glad she could put a name to face because half the girls here always had their hair in a ponytail and the majority of the guys here, who weren't scientists, had the standard military cut or were just straight up bald. The helicopter rotors began spinning and the helicopter jolted upwards. Tomie closed her eyes, she didn't like height and she didn't bode well with take off and touchdowns as she suddenly felt the familiar feeling of her stomach in her throat. She swallowed and tightened her grip on the metal handlebars.

“Tomie, open your eyes.”

The short avatar shook her head, “I rather not.”

“Tomie, you're missing it.”

Tomie opened her eyes and she was met with the rainforest. Tomie peered over Jake and Norm’s shoulders, looking outside the helicopter door, seeing the rainforest with their cat-like eyes. Tomie’s tail swished in anticipation as she watched the creatures walk through the water, the bright blue and purple sting bats soar through the sky. The helicopter or what the RDA calls them “Samsons' ' Tilted to the left kicking up water with its propellor,as it nears the rainforest and takes a soft landing.

Tomie unbuckled her seat belt and followed Jake out of the helicopter. Jake was too busy aiming his gun at something. She remembered Jake, telling her that he was a former marine and retired on disability due to his spine being completely “fucked up” . But with his legs back, he could act out his mentality and that he did. Tomie looked at him like he was stupid, or maybe she wa stupid one as she can lack the sense of danger. 

“Tomie, grab the camera!” Grace yelled over the loud propellers. 

“I got the Camera!” Tomie waved it around in her hands. The camera straps were adorned around her neck and her shirt signifying her school, plaster across her dark blue shirt with a white merriweather font. With some khaki like shorts fastened with a brown belt and her hair, was let loose, and it rested way past her shoulders, she remembered Max remarking how her hair grew fats thanks to her human genetics because apparently the indigenous Na'vi people's hair didnt grow as fast and reaches mid forearm length at most. 

* * *

They trudged through the lush flora and fauna, Tomie followed closely behind Grace and Jaske while Norm followed behind her. She felt her ears twitching picking up every squeak, croak and buzz. The scatter light bounced off the crown of her head as she pushed through the giant green and purple fern. Jake ahead of her looked, in awe at the sight that beheld him. This world was like the garden of Eden, the one where people dream of going to or recreating in their own backyard. Tomie whipped her head in the direction of distant yowling, as much as she is bigger now, couldn't help but imagine if she was in her human body, walking in this forest, a bug could practically land on her and squash her. The sheer size of the animal she studied and insects she is now seeing, resemble from an old movie called “the Mist”. She remembered watching that movie, sitting there on the futon, with her mom while her mom cross referenced her works and peer edited, and watching the giant mosquitoes breaking through the glass window of the grocery store and people scrambling for shelter. After that Movie, young Tomie for months refused to go into the grocery in hopes that her fear wouldn't manifest and become true because anything is possible.

Tomie bumped into Grace who stopped walking, Tomie peered off her shoulder to see Jake on high alert aiming his guns at the branch above him. The prolemuris swung, with their six limbs flying through the air, their blue and green bodys blending into the forest. Grace walked towards Jake, “Prolemuris. They Are not aggressive.” The prolemuris continued to swing among the branches and coo and chitter. Jake ignored Grace’s attempt to calm down. Grace grumbled before grabbing the top of the gun and aiming down towards the ground “ Relax, Marine. You're making me nervous.” she scoffed.

The four continued forwards, with Grace in the lead. Norm pipes up, “So, how will they know we're here?”

“I'm sure they are watching us right now.” Grace said, stepping over some foliage. She pushed past a giant fern, revealing a delopogated building. Norm stopped walking and turned around looking at the canopy above him, in the distance ahead of him and all around him. Tomie jumped over the giant root, the speckled light shone on the building. “What is this building?” Tomie asked. 

“It's a school house.” Grace simply said. She held a forlorn look on her face as she pulled the door open, pushing away some fallen leaves that littered the porch. She walked in, the floor board beneath her feet squeaked. Tomie stood out on the porch looking in, as Norm and Jake followed inside. The schoolhouse reminded Tomie that time when she first came to America and she saw the midwest for the first time. Acres and acres of corn and wheat fields and in the middle was an abandoned church. She wanted to explore it, experience its history and culture but quickly advised against it as one of her friends believed it was haunted. Grace and Norm were already at one of the desks pulling out bright yellow boxes. And Jake was exploring the school house, “This was our school, now it's just storage…” Grace explained to Norm. Tomie walked in, the floorboards creaked underneath the shifting pressure as Tomie walked around the school house. She walked up to the window on the other side of the schoolhouse. She looked down at the desk, there was a carving of a name, Tomie ran her long blue fingers over it feeling S-y-l-w-a-n-i-n.

Sylwanin.

Tomie turned her head and looked at the window, the wooden planks were stretching under the pressure of the vines breaking through and wrapping and pulling, her eyes followed the bright green vine to the floor boards. Tomie noticed a burgundy dot on the floor, she squatted down and ran her finger over it and it lifted off the floorboard like rust but did not bleed orange when she rubbed her fingers together but felt more like a scab. Was this blood? Screeching ensued above her. Tomie looked up and was greeted with purple and green stingbats resting and flapping about. Grace's voice continued, “The Omaticaya learned as much about us as they needed too.”

Tomie stood up. 

“Come on, let's get moving, we are burning daylight.” Grace beckoned. The three of them quickly walked out of the school house. Tomie couldn't help but shiver, if she had hair on her arms, it would stand straight up. What happened? Why was there blood on the floor of a schoolhouse? She knew school shootings were common in America, but she didn't think it would happen. As the group trudged through the rainforest getting further away from the school house. Tomie slowed her steps and walked beside Jake, who was alert and armed. “Jake, did you…” Tomie paused, “Did you see anything weird in the schoolhouse, cause I think I saw blood on the floor?”

Jake nodded in agreement, “ There were bullet holes in one of the doors, I tried to ask Grace about the subject but she avoided.”

“It is a sensitive subject…” Tomie trailed off. She looked ahead at Grace up as they began to ascend a small hill which is accompanied by some makeshift rock stairs. Tomie hurried up the rocky steps behind Grace, she opened her mouth to ask her question about the old schoolhouse but stopped herself as she quickly remembered Jake telling her about Grace avoidance of the subject. She fiddled around with a camera that hung around her neck, she noticed the light streaming down from the canopy, sparkling, her yellow eyes followed the rays up to the green canopy above her. Tomie looked up at the canopy above and lifted her camera and took a quick snapshot.

Click!

“Keeping moving, Tomie.” Jake said.

Tomie rolled her eyes and walked a little faster. 

  
  


They finally arrived at the spot where Grace wanted to be. Jake and Tomie stood behind Norm and Grace as they were running data analysis on the roots of a fern. Tomie watched intently over Norm’s shoulder, watching the screen reveal something similar to that of a neurological pathways.

“Oh, wo! It's that fast?” Norm said in astonishment. 

Grace laughed, “Amazing isn't it?”

Tomie heard slight crunching of grass and foliage get further away from her and the group, she turned around to see Jake walking away. Tomie furrowed her eyebrows and followed him to see these giant coral-like plants, with spirals going into the ground and fanning upwards, they were helicoradian. Tomie scurried up to Jake and she too was filled with curiosity as she only saw them in textbooks. Jake’s left one hand on the gun and reached forward touching the peach plant, which immediately shrunk into itself. Jake jumps back bumping into Tomies, gasping. Tomie looked at Jake and back at the now gone planet, and chuckled. Both Jake and Tomie looked at each other and back at Grace who was too busy talking about plants the psionic interfaces the plants have. Tomie took a step forward, standing ahead of Jake wanting to touch the helicoradian, this plant stood out against the green flora in the daylight, which offered a new sight, so she could understand the “cool-ness” of these plants. She reached out with her index finger and touched it,the plant shrunk and she jumped back laughing. Jake laughed along with her, moving around to get infront of her to touch the plant once again, like a house of cards collapsing, the plants shrunk in groups, all round them revealing a hammerhead titanothere. 

It trumped and stomped it feets at was revealed . Tomie’s ears flattened in fears, she felt her eyes go wide, she placed a hand on Jakes shoulder and started inching backwards. Grace and Norm ran from what they were doing. Jake cocked his gun and raised it at the hammerhead, ready to shoot.

The hammerhead titanothere swung its head back and forth and stomped and continued to roar.

Grace yelled behind the tree, “ Don't shoot. Don't shoot, you'll piss him off.”

It trumpeted once again, flaring up a big fan of blue and purple like a peacock, making himself bigger than it already was, and kicked his hoof on the ground. The vines swung around him.

“It's already pissed off.” Tomie cried. She felt her legs muscles tense up ready to run. Jake slowly inched back. “ and that the bullet would be able to get through the armor it has.”

“Tomie is right, that armor’s too thick.” Grace said. Jake pushed Tomie back, and put us gun up surrendering. Tomie looks back and forth at Jake and Grace.

“What are you going to do?”

The hammerhead took a step forward swinging more trees out of the way, splintering it. “It's a territorial threat display. Do not run, or he’ll charge.”

Tomie looked at Grace and yelled harshly , “ How are you so calm during this?”

Jake interrupted Grace asking “ So, what do I do, dance with it?’ He questioned. His forehead was scrunched up.

Grace took a deep breath, nodding her head in disagreement towards Jake’s sarcastic remark, “ Just hold your ground. “ she reassures the pair.

The hammerhead trumpeted and began charging at Jake and Tomie.

Tomie began yelling, “Jake!” 

Jake pushed Tomie further behind him, his tails swishing, flexing his jaw in hesitation and began charging towards the hammerhead and screaming. Tomie turned around and closed her eyes, afraid to see a trampled Jake on the floor.

Tomie opened her eyes, her back was to Jake and the hammerhead. She looked up and was met with a thanator. She stared at the creature with fear as recalled in her studies, that this creature is able to strike fear into the largest and fiercest pandora’s creature and Tomie knows one thing for sure, is that she's anything but fierce or large, or as Grace put it, “non-threatening.”

“ Jake.” she whispered, she took a step back, looked at Grace, who was also staring at the thantor.

“Yeah? Come on! What you got?” Jake was busy taunting the hammer headed creature, as it slowly backs away from not Jake but the sleek thanator. His tail waved boisterously, “ oh, yeah. Who's bad? That's right.”

“ Jake.” Tomie said reaching out once again, her hand trying to find him, as she kept her eyes on a thanator. She knew on earth that if you held eye contact with a great white shark, it won't attack until you look away.

Jake continued to ignore her, “ Yeah, that's what i'm talking about, bitch.” He took a step forward and puffed his chest outward. 

“Jake!” Tomie harshly yelled. Jake finally turned around and met the thanator. The thanator nashed its teeth and raised its muzzles making itself seem bigger and more threatening. It continued to snarl softly, both Tomie’s and Jake’s ears flatten in fear, the thanator roared before jumping over the pair, casting a dark shadow above them. Jake raised his gun at the black creature. Tomie felt the burning sensation in her legs again, the need to run, the flight and fight response was definitely activated and she was ready to run for her life.

Jake grabbed Tomie's hand while holding the gun in the other, “so what about this one?” He looked back and forth between the thanator and the doctor. “ Run? Don't Run? What?”

“Run! Definitely run!” Grace yelled.

Jake dragged Tomie as they ran away from the thanator, they leaped over the foliage and ducked under the vines, they slid under tree roots, Tomie looked behind to see the thanator forcing it way through the tree bark in pursuit of the two avatars, Jake let go of Tomie’s hand pushed her ahead of him, the thanator was now slicing and pushing down anything and everything in its path to get to them. Jake was breathing heavily behind Tomie, who found a narrow enough space for the two of them. She pulled Jake in through the roots The thanator jumped just as when Jake finally got in the tree roots with Tomie, Tomie could feel her heart in stomach and stomach in her heart, she was breathing very heavily, the thanator launched it self at the tree, its claws tore at the roots trying to reach Jake.

“Go, go, GO!” Jake yelled at Tomie. Tomie crawled around the base of the tree. Jake kicked the thanator, and began firing at the thanator, the balck creature jumped back before lunging forwards grabbing the gun with its jaws and tossing it aside. Tomie ran out of the tree, with Jake trailing her, she ran pushing the foliage past her, Jake was close behind her breathing heavily. The thanator jumped from the fallen log and clawed Jakes’s bag, causing him to fall. Tomie turned around, “Jake!” 

“Tomie, go!” Jake demanded

“No!!” she stood her ground, her whole body was on fire, she looked back and forth for something to find to help her friend. Would stick help? Another roar ensued. She snapped her attention to the thanator. The thantor wrapped its jaw around Jake’s backpack and waved him around in the air, like a dog with a chew toy. “Jake! Unbuckle your backpack!” Tomie yelled. Jake unbuckled his backpack and hit the ground running, he grabbed the blue girl’s hand and pulled her along with him. The thanator hissed realizing that Jake got away and pursued chasing the pair.. 

Jake and Tomie saw a ledge and they knew that if they had a better chance of surviving by jumping off the ledge and so they did. Tomie’s black hair flew upwards while she fell downwards, she landed in the water, she felt the slippery rock beneath, and found her footing, she pushed herself upwards to the surface, taking a deep breath of fresh air. She swam towards land, finding Jake pulling himself upwards on the branch. 

“Jake!.” She took a deep breath and extended her hand out to help him. The waterfall behind them was roaring, Jake took her hand and she pulled him out of the water. They looked up at the thanator, who was still roaring up on the cliff, and pacing, finding a way to get down, eyeing them.

Tomie shook her head, “What the fuck.”

* * *

  
  


Tomie sat on the ground, watching Jake whittle himself a spear. He seemed to be on high alert, and rightfully so as they were chased by the freaking thanator! Tomie still couldn't believe the first time they entered the rainforest, they would be chased by the sleek and elusive thanator. Tomie followed Jake as he waved the spear around at any direction the screeches and trilling sounds came from. It was getting dark soon and the young girl felt her heart beat faster, and the tips of her fingers tingle with anxiety. The rainforest seems to be darker now, without the protection of Grace’s infinite knowledge of the dangerous rainforest. The forest did not seem so pretty when you are scared that something is about to come out and kill you. They trudged through the forest, their wet mangly hair stuck to their cyan skin and Jake held Tomie’s hand, like a protective older brother. Tomie looked up and got a glimpse of the sky, it was more of twilight blue, signaling the sun was disappearing, it would be in the blink of an eye, before it was dark. 

Tomie closed her eyes and opened it.

The twilight dusk was gone as the venture further into the forest and was met with the familiar pitch blackness of terra’s night. Jake, let go of Tomie’s hand. “We need light.” 

“The plants are bioluminescent, it's not officially time for them to light up, as it is not dark enough.” Tomie explained

Jake took off his overshirt and wrapped it around the pointy part of the spear. He hurriedly looked around for some fuel. “Tomie, dig into your backpack for a lighter.” 

“Jake, the plants glow in the dark, they-”

“Tomie, just do what I say.”

Tomie glared at him, before slamming her backpack into the ground and roughly unzipping it and grabbing the match that so happens to be in her backpack. She was annoyed and she wore it on her face. Tomie stared at Jake as he dips his jacket in the tree sap.

“Tomie, hand me the lighter.” Jake said.

“Ok.” Tomie tossed him the lighter. That was the extent of their conversation. Jake was definitely on 100% sicko mode right now. And Tomie was not about to interrupt him on that. Jake lit the then spear into the now torch. He waved the now lighted torch around revealing a pack of viperwolves, their eyes glowed green against the fire, as they snarled and snapped. 

Tomie jumped to her feet and stood behind Jake. Tomie wasn't much of a fighter, but a pack of viperwolves against a 10 foot tall person isn't quite the fight. They barely escaped the thanator, they are just lucky that there so happened to be a cliff with water below it. They backed up, as Jake waved the flames around, backing them up. The girl looked above her to see that the viperwolves had them completely surrounded. Jake followed her eyesight and waved the flames upwards at the viperwolves on branches above them, the chiteering and combination of the flames whooshing, made the experience all too surreal. Is this how they were gonna die, get mauled by a pack of wolves. The pair of avatars quickly ran out into the clearing, where the trees were further apart, but above the canopy, still gave a partial view of the gas giant that spun in the sky. The viperwolves lunged at Tomie, and Jake whooshed the fire at the viperwolves. The girl looked around, the specks of green glittered and moved as the viperwolves circled them as they chittered and laughed.

“Now, I don't have all goddamn night!” Jake began saying to the wolves. The viper wolves remind Tomie more of hyenas than wolves. “Come on!” Jake yelled “Come on!” The viper woves lunged at Jake, he whirled around and whacked the viperwolf, which fell down to ground with a sad yelp. Tomie couldn't help but feel the strings of her heart being tugged. It sounded like a dog being kicked. Jake whirled the spear-torch hybrid and stabbed the other viperwolf lunging at him. He let the torch fall to the ground. He then whipped out his knife, and viperwolf lunged at him once again. Tomie ran to the torch and pulled it out of the viperwolf’s chest, she held it up, waving it around. Jake slashed the viperwolf and fell with another pitiful yelp.

“Tomie, hand me the torch!'' Jake yelled before falling to ground, the viperwolf grabbed on to his leg and he kicked it off. Another viper wolf jumped down onto Jake and Tomie whacked a viper wolf away, like a baseball. 

“There's so many here!” she yelled.

An arrow whizzed past Tomie, and a Na’vi woman yelled, shooting her arrows at the pack of viperwolves. Both Tomie and Jake stared at the woman, as she whacked the viper wolves with her bow. The female avatar scurried to Jake, with the torch, her eyesight not leaving the woman. As she swung her bow and hissed at the viperwolves, solely establishing her dominance. Her tail swished in indignation. Jake stood up, holding his knife in a stance while Tomie just held the torch, the yellow fire flickered gently as the wind blew. The Na’vi woman turned back to the two avatars, where one was holding his knife ready to attack, while the girl was standing there holding the torch. The blue woman raised her hand in front of her face, wincing at the brightness of the torch and quickly grabbed it out Tomie’s hand, hissing in annoyance. 

“Sorry.” Tomie said meekly.

The woman ignored her, speaking Na’vi, probably something about the brightness of the torch, and threw it in the water. Effectively putting the three of them in darkness. 

“What did you do?” Jake whined. Tomie inched closer to Jake. At first she thought she was going to die at the jaws of Thanator, then the claws of the viperwolves, and now the hands of the Na’vi. Tomie was effectively speechless, as noticed the world around her was beginning to glow. 

Jake scoffed and raised his hand at the woman. “ Great.” he looked towards the water. The woman stalked away from the avatars. The short girl stared at the the flora and fauna around her, they were glowing, completely light up the forest, the green grass that was once dull glowed a nice neon green, Tomie lifted up feet and stomped gently to see if it generated any reaction, it glowed it brighter, when came in contact to a force. Tomie slapped Jake’s shoulder, “Look.” 

He looked up, his face morphed into awe, Tomie took this as a chance to tell him “Told you so.”

He responded with a sheepish smile before turning to the na’vi woman.

Jake walked to the Na’vi woman, who was doing her prayers and resting her hand upon the dead viperwolf. “Look, I know you probably don't understand me?” Jake crouched down to her level. Tomie walked up and stood beside Jake, watching the woman in awe. “But thank you.” Jake concluded. The girl was continuing to speak Na’vi over the dead viperwolf, the marking on her body glowed like the rest of the plants around them. Jake leaned forward once again reiterating his “thanks”

The blue indigenous woman pulled out the arrow out the viper wolf's body. “That was pretty impressive.” Jake continued to try to communicate. She looked up at Jake and Tomie, listening to Jake talk, “We would have been screwed if you hadn't come along, It was..” he breathed out. The Na’vi woman stood up, her tail swishing as she walked away. “ hey, wait a second.” Jake began chasing after her. “ Hey, where are you going?” he called out after her. 

“Wait for me.” Tomie called out after Jake, she stepped off the dead viperwolf, she grimaced, her ears flattened. That could've been a dog. 

“Wait up!” Jake called after her, “ Just… slow down.” Jake reached to her, “ Look, wait up, I just wanted to say thanks for killing those things.” he grabbed her arm.

“Jake! You don't grab people!” Tomie chasized. She slapped him on the shoulder.

The Na’vi woman spun around, and whacked him across the face with her bow, making him fall on top of Tomie. “Ugh! Get off of me.” Tomie pushed Jake off her. “ What was that for?” Tomie asked.

“Don't thank me.” The woman pointed her arrow at Jake. Her tail swished in anger, “ you don't thank for this.” she tilted her head, like a woman chastising a child, “ This is sad, very sad only.” Tomie stared at the exchange between Jake and the girl.

Jake scooted to sit up, he held his hand arm, showing that he was surrendering, “ Okay. Okay. I'm sorry. Whatever I did, I am sorry.” 

The woman in front of him pointed her finger at him “all this is your fault.” obviously not accepting his apologies. “ they did not need to die.”

Jake tilted his head in confusion. “My fault?”

Tomie looked at the woman. “They attacked us?”

She took a step forward, jabbing the bow at Tomie, “ your fault!”

Jake outstretched his hand covering Tomie” woah!” 

she waved the bow at Jake, “ your fault!”

“Shh. Easy. Easy.” Jake said, hoping to deescalate the situation.

“Your like a baby. Making noise, don't know what to do.” She explained.

Tomie tilted her head at Jake, “ you know, she's not wrong.”

“ you too!” Pointing her bow at the female avatar. Tomie blinked. What did she do? Was she guilty by association?

“Easy.” Jake pushed the bow away from Tomie and he stood up, Jake hoisted Tomie up. “Fine. Fine.” He jutted behind him. “ I get your love for your little forest friends, why not let them kill our asses.”

Tomie nodded. “Yeah, you wouldn't have saved us, unless there's something about us…” The short girl trailed off.

The indgienous woman blinked, and simply said “Eywa.”

Tomie blinked, Her large yellow eyes widened in recognition of the name, “Eywa!?”

Jake looked at her and whispered, “Whose Eywa?”

The Na’vi, once again took this a chnace to remind Jake, that he was “Stupid and Ignorant like child.” The indigenous woman ran off into the shrubbery. Tomie shouted “wait!” and chased after while, Jake scoffed and ran after the two girls. Calling after the tall women, ahead of the two avatars, “well If we are like a child, then um, maybe you should teach us.”

“Sky people cannot learn.” She stared at the forest canopy above them. “ you do not see.”

The short avatar looked at the Na’vi girl, the white luminescent dots glowed green against the glowing foliage. “ Well, you can teach us to see.” Tomie chimed up.

The Na’vi girl ran across the giant tree branch, Tomie looked over the edge, there was nothing that was gonna cushion their fall, if they were to slip. By them? Jake and Tomie as they seemed to lack the balance and gracefulness the Na’vi woman seemed to possess.

Jake called out, “ Look, come on, can't we talk?” Tomie leaped over the branch, falling quickly behind the Na’vi girl. “Say, where’s you learn to speak English?” Jake asked, attempting at some conversation with her. 

Tomie chimed in “Dr.Augustine’s school?” Jake and Tomie quickly caught up to her before, Jake began to wobble and almost fall. The Na’vi woman straightened him out while Tomie crouched low to help decrease her chance of falling. “ You two are like babies.” she hissed out. She sighed and continued to speak more Na’vi.

Jake to step forward. “ Look, we need your help.” 

She frowned. “ you should not be here.”

“Ok.” Jake nodded. “Then take us with you.”

“No” she dismissed. “Go back.” 

Jake ran up to her, trying to follow her, “ Go Back.” She pushed him into Tomie.

“Hey!” Tomie shouted. “ I'm not trying to fall to my death here.”

“Go back!” The woman jutted her chin forward. Her tail swished in anger.

Tomie looked up, white jellyfish-like creatures floated downwards, Tomie couldn't help but reach up and touch them, one landed on her finger, more came floating down towards Jake and Tomie. Tomie admired the one on her hand. There was nothing in her books or studies that talked about these creatures. More dwindled down and landed on her head, nose and arms, completely covering her with white. Tomie looked up from this awe-spiring moment to see the indegnoius woman holding Jake's arm down and letting the white creature cover him too. 

“What are they?” Tomie asked the Na’vi woman.

She peered over Jake, “ Seeds of the Sacred tree. Very pure spirits” 

Tomie blinked. The seed of sacred spirits stayed on their body before floating away in the same direction.

“What was that all about?” Jake asked.

The woman began whispering Na’vi.

“Shhh.” Tomie shushed Jake.

The woman looked at both Jake and Tomie and said “Come.” she swung her bow over her shoulder and grabbed both Jake's and Tomie’s hand and began pulling them “ Come!” she said once again.

“Where are we going?” Jake asked.

“Was that Eywa?” Tomie piped up. However, the Na’vi woman ran straight ahead. They jumped over gaps on branches and ran in order to keep up with the very agile woman ahead of them. 

Jake stumbled ahead of Tomie, “what's your name?” Tomie jumped over the rock .Jake stumbled over, he grabbed onto Tomie, in order to regain his balance, but that failed and wound up pulling the female avatar down with him. The pair of avatars landed onto the glowing green forest floor. 

“Dude!” Tomie shouted at Jake, But then she looked over at Jakes, feet notice some sort of rope with disks tied at the ends of them. 

“Look.” Jake said to Tomie. The girl looked at the Na’vi men and women on the horse jumping over the foliage, with bows in their hands

.

Jake immediately jumps up, hoisting Tomie up onto her feet, and pulling out his knife. They turned to run away from the Na’vi man on horse but was met with more on foot, with their bows drawn at them, ready to fire. The avatar pair ran the other direction and was met with more na’vi men on horsebacks. They were effectively surrounded by the Na’vi. The all had their bow and arrow drawn and Jake dropped his knife and Tomie raised her hand up, to show that she was surrendering.

The Na’vi woman that had been calling them stupid for the past night, jumped down the branch with grace and ease, as she shouted in Na’vi.

Tomie could finally pick out some words as she is saying “Calm people, calm.” she turned around and looked past Jake and Tomie. Tomie looked at her line of his sight and was met with a Na’vi man dismounting from his horse, and he strutted towards the woman. What are you doing, Tsu’tey?” The woman asked. Tomie blinked, Tsu’tey must be his name. We know his name but we don't know her name!

Tsu’tey began speaking, but Tomie could only understand, “demon and forbidden.” Tomie looked at Jake and whispered, “ They are talking about us.” They Na’vi warrior nearby took a sharp step forward at Tomie.

“There has been a sign.” The woman responded to Tsu’tey. But Tomie couldn't understand anything after the word “Tsahik.” Tomie ransacked her brain, she knew the word ”Tsahik”, but she couldn't find any translation equivalent to that word. Tsu’tey looked back at two avatars and said something along the lines of “Lets go.” 

Jake immediately walked up to the woman, but was pulled back by his braids, and held by multiple Na’vi men and women. Tomie turned around but the same fate ensued as she groaned at the feeling of a knife against her braid.

The walk seems to take forever, but once they were in sight, of a ginormous tree. Tomie couldn't help but look up in awe, the tree was bigger than any tree she had seen. Her ears were filled with villagers chattering and lining up to see the spectacle that was the two avatars. The hunters whooped announced their arrivals. The whole village peered at them, Tomie eyes cat-like shifted nervously as she took in her surroundings. They finally arrived at what would be the middle or the village center of the ribe. The whole village was behind them.

The woman that had been accompanying them , addressed the well-adorned man as “father..” Tomie shook her head in bewilderment, this was a Na’vi princess!? Tomie listened intently hoping she could get the grasp of what was going on. “I see you.” The man stalked Jake and Tomie. The young girl felt her mouth go dry as she stared at the old Na’vi man. He studied her and then looked at Jake. He began walking back to his daughter, “This creatures, why did you bring them here?”

His daughter explained herself, “I was going to kill him.” Tomie felt her ears perk up at the word “kill”. “ But there was a sign from Eywa.” 

But you could tell her father was not impressed. “ I have said no…” Tomie shook her head, she didn't understand that word. “...come here.” 

Jake looked at Tomie and asked “What’s he saying?”

“Shush.” Tomie whispered.

The woman’s father stared at the two avatars, “ Their alien smell fills my nose.” 

“What is he saying?” Jake asked once again. 

Tomie looked at Jake, staring intently in his eyes to convey the urgency of the situation, “ Her father is debating whether to kill us.

Jake looked back at the girl's father, “Father? It's nice to meet you, sir.” Jake decided to extend his hand for a handshake. The Na’vi warriors pulled Jake back and the Na’vi warriors that were behind Tomie, pulled her braid back. “Ow!” 

A female Na’vi of higher status came down, “ I will look at those aliens.”

The daughter introduced her as “mother, she is Tsahik, The one who interprets the will of Eywa.” Tomie faced tingled in realization. Tsahik is the equivalent to the word Soryo or monk. Tomie internally jumped at the word connection she made, however she realized that mother was in front of the proceeds to prick her with a bone. She yelped and immediately went to cover the wounded spot. “ What are you called?” she looked at both Jake and Tomie. 

Jake, first introduced himself, “I'm Jake Sully.”

The Tsahik looked at Tomie waiting for her to answer. “I’m Tomie Takahashi.” 

“Why did you come to us?” she demanded.

Jake looked her in the eyes, “ I came to learn.” 

The mother stared back at Jake with the same intensity, “ we have tried to teach other sky people. It is hard to fill a cup which is already full.”

Jake shrugged, “ Well, my cup is empty, trust me.” he smiled, “Just ask Dr.Augustine, i'm no scientist-”

“What _are_ you?” she interrupted.

“I was a marine. A warrior of the Jarhead clan.” Tomie snorted.

Tsu’tey shouted “ a warrior!” He came closer to Jake, ready to fight him, “ I could kill him easily!”

The father held him back, “No!” The father looked out at the villagers, “ This is the first warrior…” Tomie furrowed her eyebrows, she needed to learn more words. “...we have seen. We need to learn more about him.”

The Tsahik turned to Tomie, “ And you why have come to us?”

“Scholarship, I guess?” Tomie shrugged. 

Tsahik nodded in response, “Scholarship? What is that?”

“Oh, uh, a scholarship is an academic study.” 

The mother narrowed her eyes at Tomie, “What are you?”

“A student of, uh, Yale University.” Tomie sheepishly rubbed the back of her neck.

The Tsahik turned to her husband, and nodded. She approached her daughter, “ You will teach him our way.” she hissed begrudgingly, her mom placed her hand on her shoulder, “ To speak and walk as we do.”

“Why me?” but she was shut down immediately “ that's not fair.”

The Tsahik turned to Tsu’tey, “ and you, Tsu’tey will teach her along with your students ...” pointing at Tomie, Tsu’tey looked at the young girl, and glared at her “to speak and walk as we do.” he opened his mouth but the older woman raised her hand to silence him. He backed down, his tails swishing and ears flat in submission of the matriarch.

“Its decided. My daughter and Tsu’tey will teach you two our ways.'' She approached the two avatars. “ Learn well, Jakesully and To’mietakahashi. Then we will see if your insanity can be cured.” 

Jake and Tomie looked around and nodded.

“Very well, Neytiri bring show Jakesully where he can change. And Tsu’tey show where Tomietakahashi can change.” The Tsahik said. Neytiri waved at Jake to come along.

While Tomie looked at Tsu’tey, who looked down at her, and huffed, he turned around and his back was to her and he began walking off. Tomie looked around, to see if that was her cue to follow, but she wasn't sure, she debated whether she should follow him or stand there. Tsu’tey made his way half way up the tree before turning back to look at Tomie, “Come!” Tomie blinked, guessing she was supposed to follow him, she hurried up the ramp and followed Tsu’tey. She struggled to keep up with the speed Tsu’tey maintained. They finally reached the area where there were small empty alcoves that looked to be used as some sort of storage. Tomie looked around, the blue glow of the lamps shifted as Tsu’tey walked out holding what looked like female na’vi garments. _“Put this on.”_ He simply said. 

Tomie looked at the clothes in her hands. “Uh…”

_“Change in there.”_ Tsu’tey simply pointed at the empty alcove.

She held her clothes to her chest, like a shy girl who is uncomfortable changing in the locker rooms, she ducked into the alcove. She held up the loin cloth and studied it, it looked to be made of strumbeast, which gave a dull brown-mauve-ish color. She unlooped the belt, held her cargo shorts and placed it on the floor. Tomie’s hand shook as she unbuttoned her shorts, she didn't like feeling exposed physically in a new place. She shimmied out of her shorts, she shoved it to the side, with her foot. She held up the loincloth, she wrapped the straps around her waist, the front flap covered, her lower pelvic region and she felt the familiar breeze on her exposed butt. She looked tacky with the “Yale” t-shirt and the loincloth. Tomie took off her shirt, exposing her breast to the cool air. Tomie grabbed the top by the string and wrapped it around her neck, it hung low adorned with multiple plant-like feathers, possibly from the helicordian plant. It covered her breast in all of the right places. Tomie looked down at herself, she’s wearing na’vi clothes, the human clothes were on the floor beside her foot.

Tomie exited the alcove with her clothes in her hand, _“What do I do with these?”_

Tsu’tey looked at the clothes in her hand, his face morphed into disdain. _“Leave it in there, no one uses it.”_

_“Ok…”_ Tomie placed the clothes in the alcove.

  
  


It was dinner time, apparently the Na’vi ate later in the night. Tomie followed Tsu’tey into a group of Na’vi natives, they sat around the fire eating. She scanned the crowd for Jake but could not find him. She felt insecure by her lack of coverage in the breast area and the butt area, she couldn't help but cross her arms over her chest and follow Tsu’tey through the crowd, the Na’vi were staring at her, she looked at the ground and cautiously stepped over the row of tail swishing. Until she found where Tsu’tey was sitting, right next to the clan chief and the Tsahik. Tsu’tey handed her a bowl, and began eating quietly. The dreamwalker stood next to Tsu’tey with the wrapped food in her hand. Does she have to sit next to the most important people of the entire clan. She shifted around, her yellow eyes darted back and forth.

_“Uniltìrantokx, sit.”_ Tsu’tey snapped. Tomie dropped down to the floor and onto her knees. She looked down at the food in her hand. She unwrapped the bowl to find some cooked mystery meat, she looked down at it and whispered “Itadakimasu.” before eating the food. Tsu’tey stared at her before looking back at his food. She felt the eyes that were once on her now off of her, she looked to see Neytiri and Jake stumbling behind.Tomie’s eye lit up at the sight of Jake awkwardly picking out a wedgie and walking through the crowd of people. Jake caught Tomie’s eyes, and lit up at the sight of someone familiar, he waved at Tomie and Tomie waved back. Jake sat down and Tomie was finished with her dinner. 

Tomie turned to Tsu’tey, this was the time to practice her Na’vi, _“Uh, It's very nice to meet you…”_ the Na’vi warrior stared at her, Tomie felt herself getting nervous, _“ My name is Tomie.”_

Tsu’tey ignored her and turned to the clan chief and spoke very quickly in Na’vi, _“these aliens try to look like people.”_

Neytri’s mom stared at Jake, and talked to her husband, _“He seems dim to me. And his eyes are too small.”_ Tomie couldn't help but study Jake’s avatar feature. _“TomieTakahashi”_ Her ears peaked at the sound of her name. She turned around and looked at the Tsahik, “ you are short.” she said in english.

Tomie looked at her, blinked and slowly nodding in agreement. _“ I am short.”_ she responded in Na’vi. She looked away from the older woman and looked at the fire that danced in front of her. Just when you thought you were finally tall, you are short by Na’vi standard.

  
  


Tomie once again struggled to keep up with Tsu’tey as he scurried along the branch. _“ Come on.”_ the Na’vi warrior called out. Tomie picked up the speed and bumped into the suddenly stationary Tsu’tey. The Na’vi man hissed at her and his tail swished around in annoyance. Tomie took a step back, putting her hands up in surrender. _“ This is where we sleep.”_ he pointed at the hammock that hung way to high off the ground. 

She inwardly groaned. 

Tsu’tey did not waste any time jumping down and landing in the hammock, expecting the short girl to follow. Tomie took a deep breath and stumbled. _“I don't feel comfortable…”_ Tsu’tey glared at her. _“I don't like heights.”_ Tomie said.

_“Jump.”_ Tsu’tey simply said.

“No.” Tomie said in english.

Tsu’tey looked at her from his hammock, you could practically see the vein in his forehead ready to burst out of his forehead, he wasn't used to being told, “no.” He crawled back up the branch, where Tomie was standing. He loomed over her, with a glare on his face, _“Jump.”_

_“I-”_ she looked over the edge and down to the empty hammock, waiting below to flip over and send her falling to her death. _“I can't.”_

Tsu’tey took a step forward to Tomie, _“And why can't you?”_

Tomie couldn't help but glare at him, hasn't he not been listening? _“I told you, I don't like heights.”_

_“Tsk!”_ Tsu’tey looked down at her, _”Get used to it.”_

he grabbed her forearm, “Hey!” the dreamwalker shouted. 

Tsu’tey pulled her to the edge of the branch. _“Jump!”_

Tomie let out a shaky breath, she peered over the edge. She noticed families getting settled in, the little kids jumped off the branch and landed safely on the hammock. If a kid could do it, she could do it. Tomie took a deep breath, she bent her knees, gearing up to jump. Tomie leaned forward, noticing the dark bottomless pit. Her heart dropped and her hand reached out for the na’vi warrior and grabbed on him. “Skxawng!” he shouted.

“Shush!” Tomie hissed out. 

She gripped his arm, she noticed it was extremely firm and muscular. She kneeled downwards shaking, she sat on her butt, her feet dangling off the edge. She released her grip from his forearm and grabbed his ankle. Tsu’tey stood there stiff, looking down at the idiototic dreamwalker. She lowered herself, using Tsu’tey as an anchor. She extended her left leg, she pointed her foot, using her big toe to find the hammock, she swung her right leg over and slowly slid downwards. 

_“Let go.”_ Tsu’tey said with glare. 

_“Uh~ I don't think so.”_ She looked down and saw that she was in perfect alignment of the hammock but didn't want to let go. That means she would have to experience the sensation of falling. 

His plump lips tightened into a thin line as he bent over and pried her hands off of his ankles. Making her let go. She landed in the hammock with a small squeak. Tomie looked around and patted her body to make sure that she didn't miss the hammock and proceeded to fall to her death and this was the after life. She took a deep breath in, even though the fall was like a few seconds, her heart was beating out of her chest. She laid down on her back, the white luminescent dots the sparkrkled across her cheeks seemed brighter than usual as it lit up her yellow eyes. She turned to look at Tsu’tey, who was back to his hammock, who in return glared at her and brought the hammock over him.

Tomie rolled back on her back looking up at the branches that floated above here, in the hometree, and brought the hammock over essentially covering and she closed her eyes.

Tomie pushed the lid off of the Link bed and stood straight up. One of the link techs came rushing to here asking if she was ok. All Tomie could do was laugh. “Tomie is out of the link!” The female tech called out. 

Tomie swung over and walked to Link four to find Grace lightly slapping Jake’s face “Come on back, kid. Come one. That's it.” Grace, Norm and Max help Jake to sit up right, he was shaking his eyes in confusion. Grace looked deeply into dazed eyes, the redhead doctor's face filled with concern, “ Is the avatar safe?”

Jake nodded his head and looked at Tomie, “ Yeah, Doc.” He took deep breath and smiled, “And you are not gonna believe where we are at.”

Grace furrowed her eyebrows and turned to the young girl standing behind her. “Where are you guys.”

Tomie couldn't help but smile in excitement at the big news, it felt like she was revealing a big milestone. “ We are at the Home tree.”

* * *

~Chapter 5 sneak-peak~

Tomie ran into the Link room. “ You're late!” Grace called out. Tomie already saw that Jake was laying down in the link and Norm was placing the lid down on him. “Come on! Village life starts early! Where were you?” Grace asked, running to Tomie's link.

“Sorry! I was doing independent study late last night and this morning.” TOmie jumped into her link and brought down the metal wire case, and Grace brought down the lid, “Well, next time, don't be late.”


	5. Strawberries and Atokirina’

Tomie ran into the Link room. “ You're late!” Grace called out. Tomie already saw that Jake was laying down in the link and Norm was placing the lid down on him. “Come on! Village life starts early! Where were you?” Grace asked, running to Tomie's link.

“Sorry! I was doing independent study late last night and this morning.” More like trying to talk down her roommate from suffocating her with a pillow while she sleeps because omitting information unintentionally is what counts as lying. Tomie jumped into her link and brought down the metal wire case, and Grace brought down the lid, “Well, next time, don't be late.”

Darkness filled her vision until she opened her eyes to find a familiar face standing at the branch above her. “Wakey, wakey.” 

Tomie let out a small smile, “Good morning, again.” Tomie hoisted herself onto the branch. She peered over to see her teacher’s hammock empty. Tomie furrowed her brows together, “Did you see him leave?”

Jake looked at the empty hammock, “who, Ts’utey-”

“Tsu’tey.” Tomie corrected

Jake raised his hand up, “ Tsu’tey, Ts’utey, either way, no I didn't see him.”

“Huh..” Tomie pondered. The two dreamwalkers descended down to the base of the hometree, the redwood pillars loomed over the two avatars. They took in the sight, the na’vi were already working, some na’vi women were already half-way done with looms, and others were walking with baskets situated on their hips. In the far distance, two na’vi males were pounding something in the ground as a young na’vi child stood watching at the edge. “Wow, Grace wasn't exaggerating, village life does start early.” Tomie said in astonishment. Jake nodded in response as he took in the new life. The pair continued walking around the village. The young na’vi children took notice of the new presence and began pulling and poking at Jake and Tomie. 

Tomie whipped around, trying to catch a look of the children before falling onto her butt. “Omph!” Jake let out a laugh. Some of the children continued to pester Jake as he walked around, taking in the site. Tomie got up, swiping the dirt off of her legs. A young na’vi girl looked up at her with a nice smile.

“Zewmi, come join the class.” a voice called from the side. Zewmi scurried off to the group of kids, who sat around the teacher, she plopped down onto her bottom, next to her friends. Tomie followed her, she stood at the edge watching the teacher, wave the toy banshee, micking the flight pattern of the banshee. Tomie stood there entranced by the story of Ikinmaya, along with other kids, she stared at the light orange toy banshee, her eyes tracking like a cat with a red laser pointer.

“Hey.” Tomie turned around to see Jake swatting off the older kids. 

“Can you help me?” Jake asked, smiling. The older children were poking around at him, pulling his tail, giggling.

Tomie stepped away, pulling the commotion from the teaching circle. They walked towards the entrance of the hometree, “ Have you heard about Ikinmaya?”

Jake shook his head, “No.” More giggling ensued. “Hold on.” Jake whipped around let out a playful growl, causing the na’vi kids to jump back and squeal playfulling.

Tomie laughed. She heard trotting and turned around to see Neytiri on the giant elephant horse, pulling another giant elephant horse with a lead. Jake turned around, “Neytiri.”

Neytiri simply tossed the lead at Jake and he tossed. “Lets go.” She simply said.

“Oh! Uh Neytiri, have you seen Tsu’tey?” Tomie looked up at the na’vi princess. 

“Tsu’tey is outside by the kelutral with his student.” Neytiri explained.

Tomie felt wave annoyance surge her veins as she fought off the urge to roll her eyes. “Ok, I'll go find him.” Tomie exited the hometree and looked to the right, she saw the familiar scowl and jutted chin from the distance.Tomie walked up to the group, the two na’vi students directed their attention from Tsu’tey to the approaching dreamwalker. 

Tsu’tey frowned as he noticed their attention shift. He turned around and the frown deepened further as he saw the dreamwalker approach him, he crossed his arm, “Look who finally decided to show up.”

Tomie felt herself almost wanting to stop and turn her heel and walk away from that comment. Tsu’tey didn't even bother to tell her where the class was going to take place, what they were going to do, he didn't even wait for her. But she stopped herself and gave him a gentle smile, “Yep, here I am.” She simply said, she walked up to the two other students and stood next to them. 

Tsu’tey resumed “teaching”. “Today you are going to learn to ride the pa’li.” He gestured to the single pa’li that was sucking up nectar with its long, anteater-like tongue. “ When you bond with the pa’li, it's not permanent like when you bond with your ikran. This will be exposure to you, since this will be the first bond you make after the bonding ceremony after your mother gave birth to you.” 

Tomie looked around awkwardly, as she never experienced a bonding ceremony as a kid, or ever bonded before. The two students next to her hung on every word Tsu’tey muttered out, especially the girl. 

“Now, go practice…” The Tsu’tey waved his hand. The three students turned around to the peaceful kind pa’li slurping nectar from the pretty red-yellow flower.

“Stop!” Tsu’tey called out, “You practice with the pa’li down there.” the trio of students looked over at the stampede of giant horses. Then they looked at each other with nervousness as Tsu’tey walked away to watch his students from afar. Tomie stared at him, he seriously was not going to demonstrate or teach or do anything of the sort. He basically instructed what you're going to do and left it at that. Tomie had a chemistry teacher like that and she deemed him as the worst teacher she's ever had and so far Tsu’tey was rapidly climbing that list from the initial impression he gave as a teacher. 

Tomie looked back at her fellow peers, “I'm Tomie.” she introduced herself.

The female student with soft- eyes gave an unreadable smile, “I'm Saeyla.” she simply says.

The male na’vi student with a tired look and seemed to be smaller than most of the other guys introduced himself, “Im Ka’ani”

“So…” Tomie trailed off awkwardly, as Saeyla and Ka’ani walked away in an attempt to conquer the way of riding the pa’li. She turned her heel, “Ok..” Tomie stared at the pa’li that was separated from the stampede, trotting around. Tomie approached it with her hand extended outwards, hoping to make her presence known and it did. The pa’li shook its head and let out a little kick, making Tomie fall to the ground.

On the other hand, Saeyla approached a herd of pa’li who were trotting together before noticing the nervous na’vi. And approaching her, Saeyla's face morphed from nervousness to fear as she immediately turned the heel sprinting off and the pack of pa’li followed in suit lightly trotting after her. 

Over by the shrubs sat Ka’ani who seemed more interested in eating the fruit. The clear colored juices ran down the side of cheeks as he bit into the purple-bluish fruit as it revealed its contrasting green meat. Her heard a “huff” and felt air blow against his cyan arm. He looked up to his right to find a pa’li eyeing his fruit. 

Tomie dusted herself off and stared at the lonesome pa’li in the distance. Tomie looked back at the peaceful pa’li who was enjoying the nectar, and shaking its stumpy tail like a happy dog. She examined the flower, it seemed that the pa’li enjoyed that flower. Tomie walked to the shrubbery off the side, and picked the yellow-red flower from the stem. She held it to her nose and sniffed it. It was sweet. Tomie looked at the pa’li she set her sight on, he was standing looking around, almost as if he was teasing her, saying “come and get it.” Tomie took that as a challenge and approached the pa’li, holding out the red-yellow flower almost as an offering, the pa’li noticed the gift and trotted up to her. The pa’li reminded Tomie of a clydesdale but if an elephant got spliced into its genomes. The pa’li anteater-like tongue reached out slurping the flower accepting the gift. Tomie extended her empty hand and touched the muzzle, stroking. The pa’li leaned into her touch, accepting her. Tomie smiled as she realized the pa’li had stopped slurping the nectar and was content with Tomie’s touch. Tomie continued to rub his muzzle, Tomie stepped away continuing to rub his side of the muzzle, its neck and his belly as she finally reached its sides. She rubbed it spine, feeling the bone underneath its skin, tomie placed her hands on him, hoisting herself on the horse, she swung her leg over and she was officially sitting on the pa’li. 

Ka’ani gave the fruit as an offering distracting the pa’li, he left it on the floor, letting the pa’li graze on it. Ka’ani brought his braid over, holding it up revealing the pink tendril and making the bond. The pa’li’s eyes dilated at the momentary domestication and let Ka’ani ride the pa’li.

Saeyla circled around grabbing the closest antenna and brought the braid over shoulder and made tsaheylu, the pa’li that was chasing her stopped and nickered. Saeyla smiled at the small victory she made, she couldn't help but let out a “Wahoo!”

Tsu’tey leaned against the tree watching the three less skilled hunters-in-training conquer riding the pa’li. He felt someone approach him from behind, “Olo’eyktan.” he greeted.  
The clan leader nodded in acknowledgement, “Tsu’tey, how is it going?” He looked at the three hunters-in-training.

Tsu’tey looked at Saeyla and Ka’ani, who were riding the pa’li they'd chosen. “They are doing well.”

“What about uniltìrantokx?” Ole’eyktan said while eyeing Tomie, who was riding the pa’li with no bond and holding on the dorsal-mane of the direhorse and guiding it that way..

Tsu’tey looked at the nuisance of a dreamwalker, who did not make tsaheylu, and was still managing to guide the pa’li. He felt embarrassed in front of the Olo’eyektan, who was more amused by her antics. “The uniltìrantokx is something…”

The chieftain smiled, “If you'll excuse me, I have other business to get too” and with that he left the scene. 

Tsu’tey waited until he was out of view before marching up to the dreamwalker, “Skxawng!” he shouted. Tomie whipped around and came face to face with anger. “You are not riding the pa’li!”

Tomie's smile of satisfaction dropped, “ I'm on the pa’li, aren't i?” 

His hands clenched into a fist, “ You are supposed to make tsaheylu!”

“I figured it out how to ride a pa’li.” Tomie said slowly. “Im on the pa’li!”

“No!” he snapped, “ In order to ride a pa’li, you must make tsaheylu!” he frowned, his chest heaving up and down. “That's the thing you tawtute, you don't see!” he approached Tomie, who was sitting high on the pa’li. Thankfully for Tsu’tey he was taller than the average na’vi. He grabbed the female dreamwalker’s braid, pulled her down, sending shockwaves of pain to the base of the skull radiating through her whole body. Her body fell off the pa’li and into the dirt floor, sending a cloud dust. Tomie sat up with a look of disbelief and anger. It's official, Tsu'tey definitely passed her chemistry teacher as the world’s worst teacher, not even the world’s worst, the universe’s worst teacher! Tomie looked at his ankle and stood next to her. Tomie fought the urge to commit an act of revenge by grabbing his ankle and pulling it out from beneath him. Tsu’tey stood over her making her feel small. “You don't see, and you will never see!” 

Tomie felt her mind turn as she could only see Tsu’tey’s angry face morph and contort at every word he spat out. Tomie internally shook, as all she saw was red. She never seen her get this angry before and she was doing everything in her power not to jeopardize it. “Get up.” 

“Huh?”

“Skxawng, get up.” Tsu’tey grabbed her arm and pulled up like a parent dealing with a petulant child.

Tomie kept her mouth shut.

Tsu’tey reached for Tomie’s neural link. She jumped back, “don't-” she swatted his hand away, “Not less than a couple minutes ago, you pulled on this, and it hurt like hell. Don't touch me!” she glared at him.

“I need to show you how to make tsaheylu.” Tsu’tey said stoically. 

Tomie looked at him with a frown on her face, she brought the braid around her shoulder and placed it in Tsu’tey’s hand. He held the end of the braid, revealing the pink neural tendrils wiggling, Tomie stared at it, well more like waiting to see what happens. He grabbed the pa’li’s neural link and brought it close to her’s. “This is tsaheylu, you bring this..” he brought the antenna closer to her neural link, “...and this together. Your form tsaheylu.” He brought the neural links together, the pink tendril reached out together, connecting. Tomie watched intensely as she saw the neural links connect together, tightening and stretching together like a string experiencing tension. 

Tomie felt her yellow eyes, dilate at the new sensation as all the sensory info rushed through her brain. “Woah…” 

Tsu’tey let go of the conjoined neural whips. “Now get on the pa’li.”

Tomie nodded. She mounted onto the pa’li. She looked at Tsu’tey, “what do I do next?” 

Tsu’tey scrowled.

“What!? I never made tsaheylu.” Tomie said point blank.

Tsu’tey sighed,”Think, “walk.”

Tomie nodded, “Walk.”

“I said, ''Think `` not ''say `` skxawng.” Tsu’tey chastised Tomie as she got bounced away.

The pa’li marched forward smoothly. “ I made tsaheylu!” She instructed the pa’li to march towards Ka’ani, “Ka’ani, I made tsaheylu!” 

“Good job!” he congratulated. “Is this your first time making tsaheylu?”

“Yes. Humans don’t make tsaheylu...” Tomie explained, making the pa’li trot in circles.

“Not even with your mom?” Ka’ani asked.

Tomie paused, “not even with our moms...”

Tsu’tey and Saeyla trotted up next to Ka’ani and Tomie, “Come on, let go walk around the village.” Tsu’tey instructed. 

Tomie, Ka’ani and Saeyla followed Tsu’tey into the forest. He was ahead of them, leading them as would a lead hunter do and the trio of experienced hunters followed him. Tome took this as a chance to appreciate the greenery around her, as the tall grass brushed against her foot, and the bushed greeted her with a tap on her shoulder, she felt a sense of calm. “Tomie.” a voice called out.

“Hm?” 

“How do humans bond?” Saeyla asked?

Tomie paused, she felt the gears turning in her head, she wasn’t aware of how human bonded and how they interacted with family, loved one. “We develop emotions towards one another like affection and trust.”

“How do human mother’s bond with their children?” Ka’ani asked from behind Saeyla.

“For the most part, it’s cultivated through the constant care, affection, and respect.” Tomie explained. “Bonds in humans are emotional, they are not as physical or quick as the na’vi’s”

“Huh.” Ka’ani pondered.

They walked into the clearing, where there was a cascading waterfall and shallow pool. Tsu'tey picked up the speed prompting Tomie to follow in suit. She clenched her thighs around the animal to keep her balance. She squinted her eyes to see a familiar person, Jake. 

"Jake!" the young dreamwalker shouted. The pa'li ran through the shallow water, kicking up droplets, she shivered at the cool sensation on her feet.

Jake turned around at the sound of a familiar voice, revealing his whole left side covered mud. Tomie couldn't help but chuckle at the sight.

"Hey, Tomie!" he called back, he waved his hand.

"Don't talk." Tsu'tey rode up to Jake and Neytiri.

Jake walked up to Tsu'tey, "No." he cocked his head to the side and his tail swished in agitation. He pointed his mud covered finger at the Na'vi warrior, "I knew you could speak English." Jake turned away, wiping the mud off his arms. 

Tsu'tey turned to Neytiri and in Na'vi, " This alien will learn nothing..."

Tomie peered over Tsu'tey, " Are you ok?" 

Jake nodded, "Yes, riding these pa’li suck." He shook the wet mud off his hands. " What is he saying." he picked something out of his mouth. The girl grimaced at the sight of mud in his mouth 

Tomie looked at Tsu'tey and turned back to Jake, "He is saying a rock sees more than you."

Neytiri smiled in response to Tsu'tey rant about Jake and tapped Pa'li to get going. Tsu'teys horse went off into the rainforest, while Tomie, lightly trotting away, waved back at Jake. Jake waved back. The young female dreamwalker hurried up to the Na'vi warrior side.

____________________________________________________________________________

Tomie pushed the lid off the link machine up. Tomie sighed as she placed her feet on the linoleum floor. She stood up and looked to see a few scientists clicking away, she made contact with one of them and they smiled in response. Tomie nodded in acknowledgement and looked to the link machine that Jake was in, it was still running. Huh, Jake must be still training with Neytiri. Tomie walked out of the link room, through the labs before briefly admiring the blue bioluminescent plants growing on one of the scientist’s desks, it merged in with the electronic glow of the computer screen forming a light to dark blue gradient that coated the entire room. It was a sight behold. It seems that the science sector of Hell’s Gate was the only part of the whole compound that held part of Pandora as it was. 

Tomie stepped out into the gray hallway, the blue light immediately was cut off from the automatic sliding doors. She walked through the hall before stopping by the commissary and bought a granola bar. Once again, Tomie stepped out into the hallway, she opened the over priced granola bar, frowning at the processed grains and oats, mushed and then compacted together and packaged in plastic waiting for some form of consumption. She remembered this morning what she had for breakfast, it was green fruit, rotund and plump, soft to the touch, and squashed easily like an overly ripe apricot, when you bite into it. And when Tomie bit into it this morning, it was satisfying. Her eyes widened at the new tangy, almost sour taste, like a pineapple, and when she pulled the fruit away reveliking the jagged edges of the ripped skin and bright yellow insides like a mango. Tomie's mouth watered at the memory and she found herself craving it over the granola bar in her hand. She raised the granola bar and bit into it, the saliva in her mouth was instantly gone and she chewed on the piece she had in her mouth longer than necessary. She got to her room, she fumbled for her keycard, she swallowed feeling the lump of chewed up grain make its way down her esophagus. And she pushed the door open and closed it behind. 

“Look who finally decides to come back to the room…” Phoebe in her pajamas said, she took one look at her, “...on time that is.” the blonde girl, leaned back in her chair.Tomie looked at her before taking another bite of the dry, unsatisfying granola bar and turning to her desk and switching the lamp on. Phoebe watched her every move, she grimaced as she felt the lamp light hit her retinas, she frowned, “Can you not use the lamp tonight.” 

Tomie furrowed her brows together, “I have to make a video presentation.” 

“Oh, so not only are you going to be annoying visually but also auditorily.” Phoebe shut her book. “ Next time, get here before bedtime or in the morning”

Tomie opened up her laptop and brought out her presentation script, “I can't really do that, the na’vi have late nights and early mornings.”

The blonde girl rolled her eyes. “Of course they do.”

Tomie paused debating whether she should confront her, she didn't get a chance to with Tsu’tey as she has much more at stake with the Omaticaya clan, however, with phoebe, their relationship bar is red, and Tomie never had such an aggravating person as a roommate.  
“What's your problem?” 

Phoebe looked up at Tomie, “Excuse me?”

“What's your problem, do you not like me?” Tomie confronted.

“Yes.” she simply responds.

Tomie shook her head, “Why?.”

Phoebe paused, “ I don't have a reason, it's just something about you that just pisses me off, and I don't have a reason.”

Tomie felt the tips of her ears burn at the blunt response, “But why couldn't you keep it to yourself. I don't like you but I didn't treat you like shit right off the bat. I'm just asking for some respect.”

“Ok.” she just simply says. She was sort of taken aback by Tomie’s ability to stand up for herself, maybe she wasn't such a pushover. Phoebe rolls her eyes and smiles, “I'm a bitch.”

Tomie felt her mind go from 100 to 0 in a matter of a second. Is this bitch kidding? After a heated argument, she ends the conversation with “Im a bitch.” like she was asking if they wanted to go for some coffee. Tomie blinked, it was already late and she was mentally exhausted from training with Tsu’tey and his attitude. “Yeah, you are but let just be good roommates to each other. Ok?”

Phoebe shook her head, her thick frames falling forwards down her ski-slope of nose “Yep, good roommates. Anyways i'm gonna get some water and go to bed. Good night.” 

She gave Phoebe a tight-lipped smile as Phoebe left the dorm room leaving Tomie to do her presentation, finish a couple of assignments, get ready for bed. Tomie turned off the lamp and headed straight for bed. As soon as her head hit the pillow, she stared straight up at the ceiling, looking at the pipes. Her mind was exhausted but it constantly harped on the moment when Tsu’tey pulled on her neural link and beratted her. She frowned, Tomie has never been treated like that before, not by anybody, not by her world's worst chemistry teacher. She felt her chest get heavy, is this how the na’vi got things across? She felt her cheeks get hot and her tears threaten to spill over and cool down the burning cheeks. Tomie fanned herself, as she took a deep breath, not wanting to sound like she was hyper-ventalating, she flipped onto her belly and shoved her face into her pillow. The ugly, faded blue pillow absorbed her tears as she let out a shaky breath. No. NO! Don't let him get to you! Tomie flipped over, it was what he wanted. He wants to put you down. Tsu’tey face flash across her mind’s eye, his striping made his head look like a watermelon. Tomie chuckled, melonhead. 

__________________________________________________________________________

Tomie opened her yellow eyes. She shifted around, wiggled her toes and clenched and relaxed her hands, and wiggled the tips of her finger. Tomie pulled herself out of the hammock, it wiggled beneath the changing weight distribution as she hoisted herself onto the branch. Tomie stood up and was met with her fellow peers under Tsu’tey’s prestige, Saeyla and Ka’ani.

“Kaltxi Saeyla and Ka’ani.” The dreamwalker smiled. Her white teeth glistened against the shade the hometree provides.

“Kaltxi To’mietakahashi.” Ka’ani greeted. He seemed to like Tomie, they played on the same playing field and they related to one another as they were considered “The little ones.” who struggled to keep up the senior hunters and were picked on. Saeyla nodded in greeting, she had her arm crossed as she watched the dreamwalker and Ka’ani interact.

They began making their way down the hometree. “So, what are we going to do today?” Tomie asked, she dug her toes into the dirt as they walked through the village. It was the morning routine, the young children learning the lore and singing songs, the women carrying baskets and running the loom. Men with mallets pounding seeds to make a fine paste.

“Today, we are learning to swim.” Saeyla said. Tomie nodded in response. Saeyla looked down at the short dreamwalker, “Do tawtute know how to swim?” she asked smuggly. Tomie could tell Saeyla was not fond of Tomie and in fact agreed with everything that Tsu’tey said about the dreamwalkers and shouldn't be allowed here but at least she wasn't so abrasive about her feelings towards Tomie as Tsu’tey is. 

“ Some do, some don't.” Tomie said vaguely. 

They walked out of the kelutral and was met with familiar faces. Takuk, Maru, and Atan stood along with Tsu’tey. Tomie has heard of them, they were the better trainees and were off practicing bows and arrows while the “little ones” were learning how to successfully ride a pa’li. The trio approached the group, and they greeted them. Tsu’tey eyes scanned his students, laying his eyes on Tomie the tawtute, his face dropped. Her presence was unwarranted and forced. “Come on, we heading to the river.” He wondered if dreamwalkers know how to swim and if not too bad.

The calm water meandered and carved the land and clashed against the green fauna. Tomie took a deep breathe in, the small of the river tingled her olfactory nerves. “Alright! We are learning the way of the water.” Tsu’tey began. “ Water is fickle, so you must learn how to read it. The river is calm on the surface but it's raging below. Parts of it, is shallow and other parts are not. Today you must learn to read the water and make it to the end of the stream.” Tsu’tey walked back and forth, stalking it prey. Tomie could feel that was going to be picked on. “ Tomietakahashi, you go first.” He smiled. She was soft like fruit, she was not chizeled as the others nor was she tall and she skinnier but maintained typical human female build so rather being broad at the shoulders, her hips were equidecent to her shoulder and that she was not a full-blooded na’vi. 

Tomie sighed as she took a step to the edge of the riverbank, the sound filled her ears. Tsu’tey watched smiling, almost as if he was waiting for her to drown. If he could, he would fill her wrist with rock and leave her be but Tomie would not let that happen as she took a step back and leapt with arms extended out to her sides like bird wings, she arched her lower back, lifted her head skyward and raised her arms above her head to enter the water hands first and she broke into the river with a minimal splash, she felt the push of the river, press against her long body, she broke to the surface making sure to bring whole body on top of the water, flipping to her back, like an otter and letting the river push her down stream. 

Tsu’tey felt himself shaking with anger. He knew Tomie was showing off by the way she dived into the water. The other students except Saeyla cheered for Tomie. Saeyla kept herself quiet mimicking Tsu’tey’s actions. Tsu’tey began naming students, telling them to dive into the water starting with Atan, Saeyla, Takuk, and finally Ka’ani dove into the water. Tomie was ahead of the group as she laid on her back staring at the sky, letting the current push her down the stream, she looked over her feet and noticed Ka’ani far behind, his head bobbing up and down form the current and his whole body occasionally submerging. Where’s Tsu’tey? Isn't he supposed to be helping him swim. Poor Ka’ani doesn't know how to swim let alone stay afloat. Tomie flipped onto her belly and swam upstream, pass the swimming hunters. “Ka’ani!” Tomie called out.

“Guh!” he spat out a mouth full of water. Tomie grabbed onto Ka’ani and wrapped her arm around his back, she placed her hand onto his protruding sternum and pushed him back, kicking the bottom half his body above the hidden current, he leaned back against Tomie like a baby otter. 

Tomie kicked her feet, “ are you ok? You have to be careful.” 

“Yeah. I thought tawute don't know how to swim?” He asked as he took another deep breath, they sounded less ragged.

Tomie chuckled, “I said some don't, some do, you got selective hearing like Tsu’tey and Saeyla.” The dreamwalker rolled her eyes, she kicked along the current to make them go faster as they were behind the group once again. 

“Don't talk about Tsu’tey like that.” Ka’ani defended.

Tomie couldn't help but roll her eyes. If a teacher treated her like shit, it welcomed her to shit talk about the shitty teacher. “ Ok, I won't make a comment about Tsu’tey. What about Saeyla?”

Ka’ani peered over his shoulder to look at the dreamwalker, she was pretty for a dreamwalker, she could put a few full-blooded female na’vi’s to shame with her looks. “Saeyla is Saeyla. Besides, she got a crush on Tsu’tey.” 

Tomie couldn't help but chuckle at the obvious revelation. “You think?”

“I know.”

Tomie peered over her shoulder and saw a slight dip emptying out into the small spring. “Ka’ani, there’s a small dip and then we enter out into a creek.” Ka’ani shook his head, “It's here.” Tomie felt her spine roll with changing topography of the river, Ka’ani felt his stomach drop as the dip ensued. “It's over, we are in the spring.” Tomie kicked her leg to the middle of the spring, “Ka’ani, I'm going to have to let you go, there’s no fast current here.” Tomie slipped her arms out and rolled onto her belly and began kicking to the shore, ka’ani watched her and mimicked her motions he learned better when there was a visual aid rather than being instructed. Tomie felt her feet touch grow and realized that she was about a 9 foot tall avatar rather than a 4 '11 human, toie stood up and waded to the shore. 

Tomie was greeted by Maru as she sauntered up to the young dreamwalker, “ Wow, how did you know to swim like that?” 

“Like you brought your arms like this,” mimicking Tomie’s initial dive into the river. “Do humans know how to read the water?”

Tomie chuckled sheepishly, “I've been swimming at a young age. Not all humans know how to swim or swim as good.” she rubbed the back of the neck nervously as the exited onto the outerbanks of the beautiful spring.

“The little one knows how to swim but can’t climb a tree.” Takuk muttered as he walked out of the foliage with Tsu’tey. 

That statement set off a light bulb of realization. “Trainees, we are going to climb trees.” Tomie looked to the lower tree that surrounded the outer banks, which wasn't too bad. “Those trees.” Tsu’tey pointed to the freakishly tall looming ones that looked to rival the hometree. Tomie felt her heart drop. She sucked at climbing, had no upper body strength, good finger grip. All her strength was in her legs, like a typical human being. And compared to the na’vis in her group that spent their childhood climbing and unintentionally practicing for this very moment unlike her who was just put in swim class because her mom wanted too.

“Go!”

The Na’vi students took off running, jumping onto the base of the ridiculously tall tree. “Huh?”

“Sxwang!” Tsu’tey pushed Tomie’s shoulder, the dreamwalker stumbled forward, “Go!” Tomie walked forward, placing her feet on of the knotts and hoisted her self up, she grabbed the branch and used her arms to pull herself up. Tomie let out deep exhale, as she heart was setting, she climbed and climbed. She saw Tsu’tey pass her up. How long has she been climbing? Tomie stopped climbing and looked down to find the ground way below her. Her hand got sweaty as her heart seemed to pulsate in her ears.

Thump.

Thump.

Tomie swallowed the nonexistent spit in her mouth, she rubbed her sweaty palm on her thigh and continued climbing, she was only half way up there. The rest of the students with the exception Ka’ani, who was little ways ahead of her. However Tomie got the luck of staring up at Tsu’tey’s butt as she climbed slower than he usually did, to keep an eye on the two lowest trainees. Tsu’tey looked down at Tomie who was looking down at the ground, he could see her knuckles turn wite as clecned the vines in her hand, Tomie looked back up, she held a dazed look before resuming to climb. Tsu’tey hung there, watching Tomie climb a snail speed. One her hand finally reached the vine Tsu’tey’s foot was on, and she hoisted herself up where Tsu’tey was hanging. Tomie turned to look at Tsu’tey, with her eyebrows raised and her yellow eye scanning his face as she breathed heavily. Tsu’tey stared back at her, his hairless brow bone low, his yellow eyes dark and his mouth turned upside down, Tsu’tey took this as a cue to climb past her, “Hurry up. Im tired of waiting.”

Tomie huffed in response before picking up the pace, “ Sorry, this is my first time climbing a giant tree!” 

“You humans don't know how to climb. You depend on those machines.You'll never see.” he jumped up and grabbed a vine.

The dreamwalker paused, “You know what, I can see, I got two eyes…” Tsu’tey looked down at her, “...and i'm seeing a melonhead and his striped ass.” Tomie snapped in english.

Tsu’tey frowned, “Shut up, Sxwang.”

Tomie pulled herself up, “No, you shut up, melonhead.” She grabbed the notch above them, she placed her foot against the tree, her foot slid down down the tree, the force yanked her left hand off the vine, a sharp gasp left her mouth and she closed her eyes, readily accepting her death. A hand reached out and yanked her up. Tomie wrapped her hand around the vine, Tsu’tey’s hand rested on. The dreamwalker opened her eyes, her eyebrows raised, and her mouth open gasping for air as her heart seems to beat out of her chest. 

Tsu’tey couldn't help but chuckle at her, “See, that's what you get.”

Tomie glared at him and wretched her arm out of his grasp, “Melonhead.” She climbed the rest of the way, watching Tsu’tey pass her and reach the top. She was the only one still climbing, with one final push she was finally at the top with the rest of the na’vi. She stood up on her t feet, it felt nice to be on your legs rather than solely depending on your arms as a lifeline. Tomie walked to the group of students. 

“You finally made it up here.” Takuk said. Saeyla slouched her tail flicked while Ka’ani heaved forward with exhaustion, he was still cooling off. 

Maru patted the empty spot next to her, “Tomietakahashi! Sit here.” Tomie smiled and took her spot next to her. “You must’ve made Tsu’tey mad?” Maru said.

“Huh? Why?” Tomie looked over to the right where Tsu’tey was sitting cross-legged staring off into the orange glow of the setting sun. 

Maru shrugged, “He didn't talk to anybody, after he got here, he went off to that branch and meditated.” 

Ka’ani sighed, “ Why does he push us so much?”

“He pushes us because he pushes himself.” Maru leaned back

Takuk looked at Tsu’tey, “ He pushes himself because of Sylwanin.”

Her ear perked up, Tomie sat straight-up, there’s that name again.

“Sylwanin?” Saeyla asked.

“The first daughter of Eytukan and Mo’at.” Takuk explained.

Maru leaned forward, “Tsu’tey’s beloved.” 

Saeyla did a double-take, “but Neytiri is his beloved, is she not?”

Takuk snorted, “You are young! And you are not the first woman to mistake “betrothed” for “beloved.” 

“Takuk, that is unkind. They will be our rulers someday.” Maru chastised, “Neytiri has a great heart.”

“As does Tsu’tey.” Takuk added, “They will be a formidable pair.”

Saeyla leaned back onto her hand, “Perhaps-” through her lidded eyes, peering at Tsu’tey, “-I can do better.” 

Tomie shot a look at Ka’ani, he was not kidding! “ So, Sylwanin, what happened to her?”

Maru shot a look between Takuk and Atan, the silence was drowned out by the chirping of forest ikrans and the occasional yips of viperwolves. Tomie put her hand, “you guys, don't have to answer.”

Maru grabbed Tomie’s hand and held up the group,” You have five fingers!” Tomie smiled and wiggled her fingers, Maru gasped and reached down and grabbed Tomie's foot, “You also five toes here.”

“Why do tawtute have five fingers?” Takuk asked, looking at Tomie’s hands and feet.

“Uh, to grasp things better and balance, we don't have a tail.” Tomie rattled out.

“Why don't tawtute have tails?” Maru inquired.

Tomie scratched her head, “Evolution ” she paused, “I might need to ask Dr.Augustine about this.”

“Soooweet!” Tsu’tey called out.

Atan, Maru and Takuk immediately jumped to their feet, “Come! Tsu’tey commands!” The rest of the students jump to their feets and quickly follow as they can. They ran through the forest beating the disappearing orange glow. Once they arrived at the home tree, they all split up. Tomie walked up to the archery range. The rest of the students already know basic archery as they were taught at a younger age or have been watching their parents and other people do it. She watched an older na’vi woman draw the arrow back and release it, the arrow flew hitting the makeshift target.

The woman turned to grab another arrow and noticed Tomie, “ You're the uniltìrantokx?”

Tomie nodded.

“Im Nala.” She had fine lines on the outcorner of her eyes. “ Do you…” She held up the bow and arrow, “...Want too?”

Tomie looked down at the bow and back at Nala. “Uh, yes.” She took a step towards Nala. Nala placed the wooden bow in her hands. Tomie ran her hand over the bow feeling the groove. “Is this yours?”

Nala nodded, “ Yes, I remember when I carved this wood out of the hometree after I completed Uniltaron.” Nala peered at Tomie, who was admiring her bow in her hands. “You can try it out.”

Tomie's eyes widened, “Oh, I-” Tomie looked around, “I- I don't know how to shoot a bow.”

“I can teach you.” Nala smiled. “Come here..” she beckoned, “ You hold the arrow up…” Nala demonstrated holding up an invisible arrow, Tomie mimicked Nala.”You'll hold the arrow like this, with your palm facing ” Tomie pulled the arrow back. “Take deep breath, uniltìrantokx.” Tomie took a deep breath, “and released the arrow.” the arrow flew and hit the outer ring of the makeshift target. Nala clapped, “ Not bad for a uniltìrantokx.” 

“Really?” Tomie asked.

Nala nodded, “really.” 

Tomie looked down at the beautifully carved bow in her hand, “This is beautifully carved, Nala.”

“When you complete Iknimaya and Uniltaron, I can help you carve a bow.” Nala offered, she looked down at her bow, she remembered being proud of it and all the other hunters that made it through were surrounding her and her bow admiring how pretty it was.

“TomieTakahashi!” A voice called out. Tomie turned around, “Have you seen Tsu’tey?”

Tomie shook her head. 

“Can you help me find him?” Atan asked, “ Mo’at is asking for him.”

Tomie's face faltered, “Yeah.” 

“You go this way and i'll go this way.” Atan ran off

Nala grabbed her bow out of Tomie’s hand, “If you need help with anything, you can usually find me by healer's alcoves.”

Tomie smiled and took off running to the direction where Atan pointed at. She followed a path that was shrouded by shrubbery and tall foliage. The night sky was looming as the gas giant glowed a light blue against the navy sky. Tomie squinted her eyes as he saw a light pink glow at the end of the trails, she pushed past a tall purple bush and was met with tall, willow like trees that glow pink. The dreamwalker took a step closer, her eyes widened in awe and mouth slack open. There was nothing like this in the books. 

She walked closer, her hand outstretched to touch the tendrils of the tree, running it through her hands. She felt something land on her shoulder like a kiss, it sent a wave of shock through her entire nervous system. Tomie over and brought back in her hand, it was the familiar woodsprite in her hand, it lightly hovered over the palm of her hands, “Hello there woodsprite. It nice to see you again.”  
It bounced, extending its white tendrils and curling them up like jellyfish. “Atokirina, what brings you here?” The woodsprite floated away. Tomie couldn't but smile.

Tomie ventured further, she spotted a figure sitting criss-crossed with the neural whip attached to the tendrils of the tree.. “Tsu’tey?” The figure remained unmoving. Tomie pushed aside the glowing tendrils and recognized the noticeable nick on his ear. Tsu’tey leaned forward, in his hand was his neural whip attached to the pink glowing tendrils of the tree, “Sylwanin, the dreamwalker…”

Tomie ears flicked forward, “Sylwanin?”

Tsu'tey whipped around, the look of shock was immediately replaced with disgust, “Don't utter her name…”

Tomie took a step forward, “ I saw her name at the old school house.” She paused before taking a seat next to Tsu’tey. “What happened?”

Tsu’tey looked at Tomie with skepticism.

Tomie doubled-back, “You don't have too-”

“I'll tell you, Sylwanin…” There sat Tsu’tey and Tomie under the pink glow of the tree of voices. Tomie leaned forward, hanging on every word. Tsu’tey stood straight up, indifferent to the story he was telling, recounting the story from his memory. Tomie’s yellow eyes moved back and forth, as she heard Slywanin get shot in the doorway and Tsu’tey was there to witness it. The death of his beloved. Tsu’tey paused, looking at the pink glow, nodding as he was listening to something.

Tomie stared at him and at the tendril, “ Is she there? Sylwanin?” Tomie gasped, “What is she saying?”

Tsu’tey turned to Tomie, “You are not privy to our conversation, and you should leave.” Tsu’tey said bluntly.

Tomie lips pressed into a thin line, “Your right…” she raised her hand up in submission and stood up, “...before I leave, do you miss her?”

“Just leave.” 

Tomie nodded, and walked away with her tail tucked between her legs. “Oh!” Tomie ran back to where Tsu’tey was. “Tsu’tey, mo’at wants to speak to you.”

____________________________________________________________________________

The lid of the link lifted open, Tomie swung her leg over the edge and sighed. She jumped down and walked out of the link room. She waved to some of the scientists, who also waved back before resuming their work..

“Tomie!” a familiar voice called out.

“Hey Jae.” She smiled.

“Come over here, this is cool.” Jae called out. Tomie walked over to see Jae and another scientist, a genetic engineer to be exact, one her lab coat, she had her name embroidered in red with Hana. 

“Whats going on?” 

Hana smiled, “I spliced a Terran plant with a Pandorian plant so that the Pandorian plant produce Terran fruit rather than the native fruit.” She held up a softly rip, synthetic red fruit.

Tomie’s eyes widen, “Is that a-”

“Strawberry?” Hana said, “Yes.” 

“I mean, these are expensive back on earth.” Tomie exclaimed. “Can we eat them?”

Hana smiled, “Yes!” She placed the strawberry in her basket that held the rest of the strawberries.  
“The strawberries are safe to eat.”

“Do you?” Jae picked the strawberry up.

“Sure” Tomie smiled. She took a bite of the strawberry. “I havent had these in forever.” She continued to chew, she took another bite. “My mom would buy strawberries for my birthday. Of course she could only afford four…” Tomie reached for another strawberry, “in fact, this is the most strawberries I've ever eaten.”

“My mom would bring strawberries with condensed milk.” Jae said.

“Interesting…” Tomie nodded, “Ill have to try that next time.” She took a big bite of the strawberry and swallowed, “My mom would show her affection through fruits, we couldn't afford the whole fruit, so she would bring a slice of an apple when I said.”  
“My mom did the same thing.” Jae exclaimed. Tomie smiled. In the glow of the blue amino tanks and the bright link room. The two friends bonded over their shared experience and memories and bask in the fruit of their growing friendship.

~Chapter 6 preview~

Tomie sat in the cafeteria, she scanned the book and occasionally wrote in her notebook about the Krebs cycle. She couldn't help massage her temples and flip back a couple pages,nodding her head to some tunes blasting from her vintage-styled airpods. She felt a tap on her shoulder, she looked over and saw Grace, standing with a perturbed look on her face. She takes the headphones out of her ear, “ Hey Grace what's up.”

“Get packin’ we are getting out of here.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this chapter, I rewrote this entire chapter because I didn't like the first "draft". Anyways, next week i'm going to be focusing on studying for the AP exams as I take them, the next chapter will be planned out cause I plan to implement more training scenes, develop Tsu'tey's relationship, Grace's relationship and Jake's relationships with Tomie.


	6. The Glowing Fruit Against the Changing Gray Sky

The rain droplets ran down the few windows the lab has as Tomie ran into the link room, with her bag around her shoulder.

“Tomie!” Max Patel shouted. 

“Yeah?”

“You know, you don’t have to do this?” He explained. He lengthened his stride to keep up with the scurrying girl. 

“I have to though. I have to prove him wrong.” The sliding doors to the link room opened.

“Tsu’tey?” He asked.

“Scholarship kid!” Grace ran up to the pair. She took the cigarette out of her mouth. “You don’t have to do this. Jake isn’t doing this.”

“Well because Jake has Neytiri and I got stuck with melonhead.” Tomie grumbled.

Confusion washed over Grace’s face. “Melonhead?” 

“Tsu’tey.”

Max couldn’t help but chuckle. 

“Tomie you can’t call the next in line chief, melonhead. He is of high ranking within the tribe.” Grave chastised.

Tomie couldn’t help but groan inwardly. “Fine, I’ll call him melon lord.” She mumbled. She lifted the lid of the link machine, placed her bag on the floor and got herself situated on the lovely, comfortable green gel. 

Grace reached over and grabbed the metal breastplate. “Please don’t call him melonhead or melon lord or any names for that matter.” 

“He calls me Skawng and he’s mean to me. He purposely makes things hard.” Tomie explained. ”Like I see Neytiri and Jake and Neytiri like to take her time with him.” She ran her hand over the cool green gel, the gel molding the gaps between her fingers. “With Tsu’tey, he basically throws a chicken in the water and expects it to swim as good as a duck.” 

“What?” Max frowned in confusion at the analogy Tomie made. “Don't chickens know how to swim?”

Tomie nodded, “ Yes but not as good as ducks.” she reiterated.

Grace's face held an unreadable expression as she took a drag, “Tsu’tey is a good kid.” She simply says. “What he experienced with the humans is understandable for his anger-“

“But he shouldn’t be taking it out on me!” Tomie slightly raised her voice.

“Tomie…” she said softly, “just let him see what good person you are.” 

Tomie pondered. Just keep persevering is what Grace is basically saying. “I’m going to do the overnight survival, I won’t be alone, I’ll be with Ka’ani and Saeyla.” Tomie explained. “Just trust me.”

Grace nodded, “be safe out there kid.” She brought down the lid of the link machine. 

* * *

Tsu’tey paced back and forth. He remembered the conversation with Mo’at. It was extremely cryptic as she sat him down in the hut and in the middle was incense burning. Her eyes read him like an open book as her shawl shifted as she swirled her arms above the smoke.  _ “Tsu’tey…” _ she started, she remained unblinking her yellow eyes,  _ “ I hear, you are still holding onto the past.”  _

Tsu’tey breath hitched. _ “Yes, I am. I miss Sylwanin…” _ Tsu’tey lowered his head. 

Mo’at’s face softened at the confession, she gave gentle smile and place her hand on Tsu’tey’s hand. _ “It’s okay to miss someone, but to cling to the past, will hinder Ewya’s plan for you.”  _ Tsu'tey stared at the ground. _ “Tsu’tey, embrace change.”  _

Tsu’tey looked over at his students. Tonight was the night they were going to do overnight survival. He counted their heads, there were only five students instead of six. 

_ “Im here!”  _ Tomie ran out outside of the hometree.  _ “ I'm sorry! I-”  _ Tomie stopped herself, she couldn't say, she overslept, because that's not really the case. _ “I was late.” _

_ “Tsk!”  _ Tsu’tey looked over at the group of students.  _ “We are going in as a group of three. Takuk, Maru and Atan in one group.” _ Tsu’tey turned to the remaining three, _ “ Saeyla, Ka’ani and To’mietakahashi in another group.” _ Tomie walked up to Saeyla and Ka’ani. _ “Takuk’s group, you guys go this way.” _ They took off running and disappeared into the forest.  _ “And you guys, go this way.” _ Tsu'tey pointed to the right. Tomie’s group ran into the forest, pushing past the initial foliage

Tomie adjusted the bowstring against her chest as they trudged through the forest. It was causing a line of irritation between the valley of her breast. Her group trudged through the damp forest. The soil beneath her bare foot squished and squelched as she lifted her foot and placed it down as she ran with Ka’ani and Saeyla. The dodged low hanging ferns and pushed past tall grass.

_ “Do you think we should get to higher grounds?” _ Tomie asked ahead. She was further behind Saeyla and Ka’ani. Saeyla took lead as she promptly stated that it would make her look good in Tsu’tey’s eyes, which prompted an eye roll from Tomie and a “ Why is every girl obsessed with Tsu’tey?” from Ka’ani. And Tomie agreed. Was there some form of attraction due to status? Build? He was taller and leaner than the average Na’vi that was a part of the Omaticaya clan. Tomie couldn't help but see him in her mind’s eye, his full lips, the sharp yellow eyes that seem to catch every movement, and his strangely muscular body, the resembled an olympic track runner on ear but with way less body fat and taller. 

_ “To’mieTakahashi?” _ Ka’ani broke through her thoughts. Tomie shook out of her dazed look.  _ “We are going to get on higher grounds.” _

Tomie’s face lit up _. “Really? You guys agreed?”  _ finally her opinion mattered. Ka’ani was a bit more receptive to Tomie’s suggestions, however Saeyla brown nosed everything Tomie does, just like Tsu’tey.

However that bit of happiness and feeling of acceptance was quickly crushed once Saeyla chimed in _ “ We are just going up because the path ahead delves into a cliff.” _

Tomie couldn't feel a bit more isolated.  _ “Oh ok.” _

Tomie followed Saeyla and Ka’ani up the trees, using vines to hoist her body up, placing her feet and on notches and branches. They finally reached the top of the canopy. The sky above them was gray, holding the remaining water from the earlier rain shower he occurred in the morning, it was now the afternoon, getting closer to evening. The clouds above them swirled and tumbled, telling them that it was going to rain soon. Tomie remembered studying clouds in university as one of the subjects in Earth science, however she noticed the clouds resembled the cumulonimbus formation. She paused, does the type of cloud formation that affects earth affect Pandora in the same way? This was a question for one of the scientists back at the base. 

The trio scurried across the canopy, the branches that held them up bounced at the change of pressure as they skipped and hopped and swung across the canopy. Tomie adjusted her bow around her chest, seriously what was this string made of? She looked down, despite the dark skies, the flora and fauna did not glow, it's almost as if they knew it wasn't dark time, instead the helder a more bluer-grayish-greenish shade. Tomie placed her hand on the thick trunk, to stabilize herself, she noticed her skin reassembled that shade, they were blending in like everything else on Pandora besides the humans and items of Hell’s Gate and their obnoxiously yellow mining trucks. 

They finally made it across the giant canyon, which seemed to be a dark abyss, but knowing how Pandora is, probably glows radiantly in the kight. The trio scaled their way down the tree, with Saeyla jumping off the branch and using the large leaves to slow her rate of descent and promptly landing on her feet, like the true na’vi she was born to be. Ka’ani followed suit, he resembled the runt of the group in comparison to the na’vi students, excluding the dreamwalker, but he did just as good as Saeyla. However, Tomie wasn't too keen on falling and struggled with this, so she preferred to do a more controlled and taxing descent which irritated Saeyla to no ends. She used the vines and branches to climb down, like a rock climber going down El Capitan, like a fireman scaling down the wall of a burning house. Saeyla stood there with a pinched look on her face, arms crossed and tail swishing about like an irritated cat. Once Tomie feet touched the ground, Saeyla groaned,  _ “ Finally lets go!”  _

It was already dawn, the gray clouds were tinged with a dark purple, signifying the setting sun. And Ka’ani piped up,  _ “ We should find food and find shelter for the night.” _ Tomie nodded in agreement. 

_ “Yes. Let's find some fruit. I'm an excellent forgarer, like my mom and grandmother.” _ Saeyla boasted. “ _ Follow me _ .” 

Saeyla took off, she had her head high sniffing the air, she placed her hand down on the floor, running the dirt through her fingers, she sniffed it. _ “ This way. There’s fruit trees over there.” _ She pointed westward. Ka’ani looks at Tomie with a wary look. Tomie raised her brows at him. And the pair followed Saeyla through shrubbery. 

_ “Um, you look nervous?”  _

Ka’ani nodded,  _ “ She is good at finding food…”  _ he trailed off nervously, “ _ Just not good at finding the right ones.” _

‘ _ What do you mean?” _ Tomie asked. They pushed past a giant bush.The cloud above them rumbled, signaling it was going to rain soon. They looked up at the canopy peering at the sky above them.

_ “She often finds fruits that will kill you, make you sick, or just inedible.”  _ Ka’ ani looked back down at Tomie.

She smiled,  _ “Sound like your speaking from experience.” _

Ka’ani let out a breathy laugh, _ “ When we were younger she gave a mystery fruit, and i got terribly ill for eight days.” _

Tomie grimaced. They pushed through the shrubbery, the rain was beginning to fall hard, signifying a long night. Saeyla was not in the clearing, the pair looked around for her. “ _ Where is she?” _ Tomie asked out loud, she held her hand over her head, covering her head, the rain was pounding hard on their skin,  _ “ I'm gonna go over here.” _ She walked over to the giant leaves . Tomie sat down on the ground beneath the giant leaf, sheltering herself, from the rain. 

Kan’ani followed in suit, looking down at the puddles, seeing in the reflection, a glowing yellow fruit, he recognized this fruit, he remembered his mother telling him not to touch this fruit because it would seriously burn you. He saw Seayla reaching for the yellow glowing fruit. He gasped, his hairless brows raising, his ear pointed, his tail rigid, he whipped around and quickly scaled the tree and grabbed Saeyla’s and yelled  _ “Stop!” _ , jerking her hand away from the fruit. Shaking branch holding the fruit causing it to fall to the ground. Tomie flinched as she watched the sizzling fruit melting the wet ground.

She peered up from beneath the leaf and up at Ka’ani and Saeyla and the pair in the tree stared down at the melting glowing fruit. 

“ _ Oh.”  _ Saeyla simply said. 

_ “How about we drink some water and call it a night.” _ Tomie suggested.

_ “To’mietakahashi is right. _ ” Ka’ani agreed.  _ “ It's getting late, and we need to preserve our energy.” _

Saeyla nodded, still in shock that she was going to lose her finger to fruit and ignorance. 

The pair crawled down the tree and met up with Tomie on the floor. The trio left the area, Tomie looked behind her, staring up at the burning fruit, she wondered if Grace knew anything about this fruit, were humans able to get their hands on this fruit? 

The forest glowed against the gray, drewery weather. It was a sight behold, the purple, magenta, orange, blue, green glowed from the forest as the trio left the forest settling beneath a giant leaf that could cover them. The water made their skin blue skin look slick and the bioluminescent white dots on their body glowed brighter. Saeyla reached up, cupping a smaller leaf, tilting it, letting the water run down into her mouth. Tomie lifted the bow over her head and settled on her legs, she leaned back on the stalk of the leaf. Ka’ani leaned forward fiddling with the knots of his training bow. 

Saeylla sat back down with the rest of her group. The overnight survival training was starting to tire them out. Ka’ani yawned and Saeylla slouched, before long the pair fell asleep. Tomie looked up at the leaf above her, her yellow eyes trailing, following the green veins of the leaf. She knew that if she fell asleep, she would wake up in Hell’s gate and leave her avatar exposed to the elements. Grace wouldn't be too happy with her.

Tomie blinked slowly and yawned and arched her back, stretching. She blinked and fiddled with her training bow. She admired the simplicity of the training bow, it matched the simplicity of her attire and the simplicity of this life. Tomie appreciated this life, it was simple, they focused on training, hunting, forging, cooking, dancing. This was the first time she felt truly free from the complexity of human civilization, she didn't worry about studying, finding a job, finding a means to survive and live a comfortable life. Here it was just living a comfortable life and surviving and you weren't alone, you were never alone. 

The rain finally stopped, Tomie watched the water drip from the canopy. She placed her bow over her chest and tip-toed out beneath the leaf, the crowd was crawling away revealing the giant gas planet in the sky, the duskly sky tinged pink. Tomie felt her stomach rumble. Maybe she should find something to eat. She remembered seeing a fruit yesterday that was edible. She metnally thanked Grace’s book. She scurried off into the forest leaving the sleeping bodies of Ka’ani and Saeylla, beneath the damp leaflet.

Tsu’tey nudged Ka’ani with his foot. _ “Wake up, you would be dead right now.”  _

Ka’ani shot right up, and shook Saeyla awake. Saeyla woke up and saw Tsu’tey face and sat right up. 

Tsu’tey looked around, _ “ you're lucky, my foot doesn't have teeth.”  _ he chastised. Ka’ani placed the bow over his chest. Saeyla rubbed her eyes and fixed her appearance and adjusted the bow over her shoulder. Ka’ani yawned.  _ “Where’s the  _ _ tawtute?” _ Tsu’tey asked. Ka’ani looked around, not seeing the short girl. 

A familiar scream echoed out of the forest. Tsu’tey’s head turned to the direction of the sound. He immediately sprung into action. Following the sound. Ka’ani and Saeyla followed him. The blur of blue past the green foliage. Stumbling into the clearing where Tomie was standing

Tomie dropped the fruit on the ground, splashing mud against her shins. She trembled at the familiar sight, her mouth was dry as she took a step back. The thanator growled, stalking towards her. She peered out of the corner of her eyes and saw Tsu’tey, Ka’ani, and Saeyla. The three Na’vi behind stood still. 

Tomie looked ahead, past the Thanator, she recognized the footprint of Saeyla, followed by hers and Ka’ani. She looked at the foot prints and back at the thanator. Tsu’tey watched as Tomie reeled back onto her heels and sprint towards, no past the thanator, barely missing being clawed to death. The thanator paid no mind to the Tsu’tey, Ka’ani and Saeyla as it chased after the dreamwalker. 

Tsu’tey turned to Ka’ani and Saeyla,  _ “return to the Hometree, immediately!” _ They nodded and immediately disappeared into the bushes. 

Tsu’tey quickly climbed the tree and ran across the canopy, using his sharp eyes to find Tomie jump up the tree narrowly missing the Thanator's strong jaws. She scampered across the branch, falling to her knees and crawling to edge the branch that held the glowing fruit. She grabbed the edge of the branch, being careful not to touch the hot fruit, her fingers seemed to sweat at the close proximity. She scooted back, keeping her eyes on the thanator reeling back, getting ready to spring forward and finally capture the dreamwalker. Tomie reached the edge of the branch, she kneeled near the trunk of the tree. The thanator roared, spring forwards, Tomie released her grip on the branch, flinging forward, catapulting the the glowing yellow fruit, and yellow blur shot at the black Thanator, colliding with a sound of sizzling, confirming the contact. The thanator screeched.

Tsu’tey hand lowered down, gripping Tomie’s forearm, pulling her upwards into the canopy.  _ “Lets go!” _ he whispered harshly. They ran across the canopy, the blur of green and white and brown danced across their vision as they disappeared out of the thanator’s clutch. Tsu’tey was stunned at how Tomie was able to face the Thanator head-on. He’d never seen anybody done anything like that. She was definitely smart, he’ll give her that. Tsu’tey swung with his arm on a branch, and in his other hand held a bow. Tomie jumped and followed in suit. The forest floor was way below them as they ran near the forest canopy. The stream light bounced off their striped blue skin. Tomie noticed that Tsu'tey was a darker cyan blue, like he was almost tan. Tomie couldn't help but look at herself to see that she was light blue. The Na’vi warrior jumped down from the branch using the giant leaves to slow down his fall. Tomie skidded to a stop, she didn't like the feeling of falling, and she sucked at it. Tsu’tey stood at the bottom of the rainforest floor looking up at Tomie.  _ “Come on.” _ He shout in Na’vi

_ “I don't think I can.” _ Tomie called from the tallest branch. 

_ “Trust yourself.” _ Tsu’tey called from below.

Tomie took a step closer to the edge of the branch and peered down, Tsu’tey waved his hand down, she shook her head like a petulant child and the quickly scampered away from the edge. “ To’mietakahashi!” Tomie peered down from a safer distance from the edge. She saw Tsu’tey place his hand on his belly and took a deep breath,  _ “mong.” _

_ “Mong?”  _ Tomie repeated back. 

Breathe?

She placed the bow around her shoulder. Was she doing this on blind faith? She placed her hand on her stomach and took a deep breath,  _ “mong” _ , she thought. She ran to the ledge and jumped. Landing on one leaf and then fell to the other leaf before landing on her butt with a groan. She fell back on her back and looked up at the glittering light shining through the forest. She felt something nudge her ribs. She looked at Tsu’tey who was looking at her with annoyance. At leasts she’s smart.

_ “Get up, Skxawng. _ ” 

She got up. “ _ Why ‘mong’?” _ Tsu’tey ignored her and began taking off running into the shrubbery. Tomie sighed and followed after him.

* * *

She laid on her stomach, her notebook wide open beside her as she scribbled notes in her notebook. Her long black hair was sprawled like silky ink swirling in a cup of water, the highlighter clicked open and highlighted a sentence in her notebook. 

She flipped to the next page, it revealed an anatomical drawing of a Na’vi and it highlighted the nervous system and its queue. She noticed that in older editions of the neuroscience textbooks, the understanding of neural whip varied greatly , especially when avatars were created and humans got to experience the function of the neural whip. This got her thinking about the earlier avatars such as Grace’s and Rene Harper’s, that carried more human-esque characteristics like a slimmer nose, than the current versions. She remembered learning about how earlier avatars suffered from the same symptoms of pituitary gigantism, where the bodies would be tall as the na’vi’s but the organs would be the size to suffice for a human, which led to early deaths to those avatars.

The door opened and revealed a rather disgruntled Phoebe with her hair up in a bun, and her hands covering her hairline. “Hey, Tomie…” her southern accent rung out, “...have you seen my wallet?”

Tomie looked up from her thoughts and shook her head no.

Phoebe sighed, “I really need to dye my hair, my roots are growing back in.” She hurried to her bed, shoving her hands in the crevices in her bed. Tomie looked at Phoebe, seeing a band of dark brown, standing out against her blonde hair.

“I thought you were already blonde?” Tomie leaned back on her hands.

Phoebe felt something brush against her wondering fingers, so she pushed her arms further into the crevices of the mattresses. “ I did it myself.”

The black-haired girl’s eyes widened, “Wow, you did really good!” 

The blonde pulled out her wallet, “ Thanks!” She opened it making sure the contents did not fall into the bed, “ I originally wanted to do cosmetology school but my dad died and all his inheritance is withheld until I get an actual high-paying degree which is exo-geology. I tried sticking it out but quickly ran out of money.” 

“Oh..” Tomie didn't know how to respond to Phoebe’s sudden revelations.

Phoebe lips pursed into a thin line, “ Have you dyed your hair?”

Tomie once again shook her hand.

Phoebe’s face lit up, she scurried over to Tomie’s side of the room, “ oh my gosh, you have virgin hair.”

“Virgin hair?” Tomei said.

“Can I dye you hair?” Phoebe asked, with an intense look on her face, she seemed so eager, so happy.

Tomie touched the dead ends of her hair, “Sure, I've always wanted to dye my hair blonde.”

Phoebe jumped, “Yes, come on, lets go to the commissary and get some developer and toner.”

Tomie felt her heartbeat fast with nervousness, she flipped her book shut and followed her roommate out the door and into the hallway.

They enter the commissary and head straight to the hair products section, the harsh fluorescent light shines harshly on the two girls in comfy clothing. They stood out against the rest of RDA workers there in uniform whether it was rather drab shade of navy blue or straight-up military gear. 

Phoebe grabbed the bottle that said 20 developers and 40 developers and a lavender tinted toner and other hair dying stuff. A ding, emitted from her jacket pocket. “ Oh, Tomie can you hold this.” she split the bottles into Tomie’s arms. 

“Oh ok.” Phoebe took out her phone in her hand, slid her phone open, rolled her eyes and shoved her phone in her pocket. “Ugh, men.” she simply said.

Tomie handed back some of the bottles, “ What happened?”

“ You know, i started talking to some guy…” They began walking back to the self checkout line, until Phone suddenly hides behind some of the produce, “ get down here.” she harshly whispered.

Tomie squatted down, “ What?” she responded in the same level of volume and harshness.

“Oh my gosh, it's him!” Phoebe placed a free hand over her mouth.

Tomie peered over the produce spotting a bald, white man, with blue eyes and thick eyebrows and a very pronounced double chin, tome squatted back down behind the produce turning to Phoebe, “ Lyle Wainfleet?”

“ Shhh!” Phoebe shushed. “Ugh, please tell me he’s gone?” 

Tomie once again peered over the produce, he was gone. She stood up, “ He’s gone.”

“Oh, thank god.” she hurried to the self checkout. And immediately ran the bottles over the scanner. Shoving it in the bag and paying.Tomie followed her out of the commissary in a blur.

They entered their dorm, Tomie softly closed the door and locked it. Phoebe dumped the bleach onto her bed and tossed the brown plastic bag on the floor of their dorm.Tomie quickly bundled it and placed it back on the bed. Phoebe wheeled her chair over by the bed and smacked the seat, “sit down!” 

Tomie plopped her herself down on the seat and Phoebe immediately started working. She grabbed the bowls and squirted the 40 developers in the bowl and mixed it. She sectioned her hair and began lathering the bleach on Tomie’s pitch black hair starting at the ends and working her way up to the roots. Tomie started ahead at her side of the room, “So…” she trailed off, “Lyle Wainfleet? What's up with him?” 

Phoebe sighed with exasperation, “ I started talking to him as friends…” Phoebe explained. “ Then he sent me a picture of his penis.”

“Oh no.” Tomie said, wincing at the exothermic reaction of bleach working its magic on her hair.

“Tell me about it.” she continued sectioning her hair and putting the last of the bleach on her hair, efficiently covering her whole head of hair in bleach. “ Then he had the audacity to get mad about me not sending in anything in return.” She sighed. 

“ He sounds like trash.” Tomie stood up, feeling the heat against her scalp. She hurried to the mirror to see the darkness of her hair gone.

“He is trash.” Phoebe said matter of factly. She pulled the chair over by the mirror where Tomie was standing and began doing her own hair. “ he’s extremely toxic and stays clear of him.” She warned. 

Tomie sat back on her bed, making sure not to lay down and get bleach all over the covers, “ Aren't all military men toxici?”

Phoebe took her eyes off the mirror and looked at Tomie, “ preach it sister. It sucks that I have to work with them, they are all over here. You’re so lucky.”

They continued to gossip and talk about their lives. They washed out the bleach. Tomie’s hair was no longer a long silky black but rather a light, almost sandy blonde, it complemented her skin color and she was happy with how different she looked. 

* * *

Grace narrowed her eyes looking at the girl who strolled in with blonde hair, before blinking twice, realizing it was Tomie. “Tomie?” 

“Yes?” she responded back, she head towards her link machine.

“ You dyed your hair.” Grace said. Staring at how it changed her looks.

“I did.” Tomie smiled, she was enjoying the newfound attention from others. Tomie typed in her pin code, activating her link machine. The machine whirred and glowed green as the lock that held the lid of the machine clicked. Tomie lifted it up and feeling the urge to pee her finger in the cool foamy gel, she poked it.

“Hey, whose blondie?” Tomie heard Jake's voice called out. She heard him come up from behind and she turned around. 

“Tomie?”

Tomie frowned, “ You sound disappointed.”

Jake smiled, hoping to alleviate the teasing frown Tomie gave off. “ No, blonde suits you.” he complimented.

“alright , village life starts early!” Grace called out from beside Max. 

“ Get to your machine.” Tomie shooed Jake away.

Jake wheeled over to his machine, “ See you at dinner.”

Tomie slid into her link machine, “ See you at dinner.” she repeated. She closed the lid of her link machine, feeling the cloo gel hug her head, shoulders, waist, hips, knees, and feet. It felt nice. 

She closed her brown eyes and she opened her yellow eyes. 

She was back at the hometree, she hopped out of her hammock and hurried down to the communal part of the hometree which was at the base of the tree and the base of the omaticaya village life. Children running and playing, women weaving, hunting, foraging, and tending. Healers sitting, talking and tending. Men, weaving, whittling, cooing, hunting. The village was bustling about the red wood like pillars that held up the tree. Tomie spotted Jake walking off of the hometree with Neytiri.

Tomie sway Ka’ani working along with an older woman. Tomie scurried up to him,  _ “Ka’ani, why aren't you with Tsu’tey?”  _

Ka’ani looked up from assembling an arrow, “ _ Hello To’mietakahashi...:` _ `He greeted,  _ “Did no one tell you, training is cancelled today because Tsu’tey is working with Olo’eyktan in regards to his duties.”  _

Tomie frowned,  _ “ Nobody told me. _ ” However her mind trailed off to a friend she made earlier in the month.  _ “But thank you for telling me.”  _ Tomie waved goodbye before running off to the healer alcoves. The healer section of the tree was rather quiet as there was no big hunting expedition and rituals that would increase the na’vi’s chance of getting injured.

She pushed aside the curtain revealing Nala, an older na’vi woman crushing up some herbs. Healers were definitely dressed ornate compared to the rest of villagers excluding the Olo’eyktan and Tsahik, who were the leaders. She wore a light, beaded shawl that rested gently over the slender shoulders, her hair was pushed back, and braided, and she had a singular sharp bone hanging from her neck, kind of like a stethoscope. Nala looked up, her eyes smiled at the sight of the dreamwalker.  _ “ I have been expecting you.” _ she said, almost like a psychic in a carnie tent.

Tomie stopped, _ “You have?” _

_ “No.” _ Nala smiled. _ “ i'm a healer, not the Tsahik.” _ she simply said. She patted the empty floor next stirring up a cloud of light dust. Tomie of course took the offer and sat down next to her.  _ “What brings you here?”  _ She asked

Tomie sighed,  _ “Tsu’tey cancelled training.” _

Nala gave a sympathetic look towards the dreamwalker,  _ “You sound disappointed. _ ” 

Tomie tilted her head to the side debating on her feelings. She felt that she could be doing something better like catching up on her work but this gave her a perfect opportunity to experience the typical life of an Omaticaya. But she didn't know anybody else because she’s been so focused or rather Tsu’tey pulled away from the culture, for example, not letting her sit anywhere else besides him when it's dinner time or after the initial training session, he would pull her away to practice her archery or her climbing. This was the first time, her time was her own, rather than Tsu’tey’s. So was she disappointed? She was rather disappointed at the fact that nobody told her that class was cancelled, especially Tsu’tey. But Tomie was glad that she had time to spend time and learn from Nala.

_ “Not really, Nala.”  _ Tomei responded to the healer. She looked at the medicinal bowl in her hand.  _ “What are you making?” _ she asked.

Nala looked down at the bowl in her hand and sprinkled water,  _ “ a salve.” _ she simply said _. “ It's for scraps and burns.” _ she continued to mush.

Tomie watched her make the salve. _ “ So what's it liked to be a healer?” _

Nala looked at Tomie with a soft smile,  _ “Do you want to be a healer?” _

Tomie felt herself internally doubleback, if she could do it physically, she would be crab walking straight out the alcove. But she stopped, “ _ Yes. I think. “ _

“ _ I could teach you.”  _ she handed the medicinal bowl into the dreamwalker's hand. Tomie cradled in her hand, balancin it carefully making sure it doesn't fall to the ground. The healer handed her the pestle, and urged her to continue to squash the salve. Tomie held the pestle and in her blue hands and mushed it around.

Nala nodded.  _ “ I think you would be a good healer. _ ” she stood up and went to the jars that stood against the wall of the alcove.

Tomie looked down at the green salve in her hand. Nala walked up behind her and poured a liquid in the bowl. Tomie continued to mix the bowl, the liquidy texture transformed into a semi-gel like consistency. Nala reached down and scooped the gel and placed it on Tomie’s hand, she felt a cooling sensation like mint or aloe kiss her skin, and emit some goosebumps.

_ “How does it feel?”  _ Nala asked

_ “It feels cold.”  _ Tomie simply said.

“ _ Then it's working perfectly.” _ Nala smiled.

Tomie sniffed the salve, her eyes dilating as she tried to register what this was, it smelt a felt like aloe but the closest Pandoran counterpart of aloe was obviously Aloeparilus succulentus which grew to be about two times larger than typical terran aloe plant. They just had similar names. “ _ Is there Dapophet?” _ Tomie asked.

Nala smiled,  _ “Yes, you seem to know your plants very well.”  _

_ “Thanks to Dr.Augustine and Tsu’tey.” _ Tomie explained back when Grace sat her down along with Jake and drilled them on Pandoran flora and fauna, which was intense for poor Jake but Tomie quickly caught on which sparked the competitiveness between the two young avatar drivers. And with Tsu’tey, Tomie had close call with Bansheba terrestre or the banshee of paradise, when Tomie stumbled near the plant and Tsu’tey saw the plant rotate its tubular body at Tomie and Tsu’tey lept, pushing her out of the path of flying spine, landing on top of her. Tomie quickly pushed him off of her and rolled over and jumped up. 

_ “Ah, that's so nice that Tsu’tey saved you.” _ Nala said 

“Mmmhmm.” Tomie smiled 

Nala patted her shoulder, “  _ In case something like that happens or if anybody including you gets seriously injured by the sky people, the plants or animals, there's a plant that will aid in stopping the bleeding in major wounds.” _ Nala explained . This caught Tomie’s attention, and Nala knew that the young dreamwalker's back straightened and her ears flicked forward.  _ “ this plant is called flefle.”  _

Tomie with her eyes dazzling,  _ “Teach me, please.”  _

After that Tomie spent her day learning from Nala about the traditional, herbalistic, medicinal properties of each plant and how to harvest them and through the art of botany create salves and ointments and more.

The sun began setting and Nala ushered Tomie out of her healing alcove as a patient was rushed in. Tomie bid a quick farewell and wandered around the village. She saw everyone, she knew, everybody excluding Tsu’tey. She kind of missed his presence, he made the day exciting and almost adventurous. She found herself standing at the foot of the grove. The tree of voices, it was a beautiful place, the light pink glow welcomed her, and the breeze pushed her in, the tendril touched her shoulder pushing her in further into the grove until she saw a figure stand. 

_ “To’mietakahashi?”  _ a familiar voice called out. Tsu’tey’s.

She felt her brain stop, what is she doing here?

_ “What are you doing here? _ ” he demanded. 

It was like a glitch. She fully realized that she walked out of the hometree into the tree of voices looking for Tsu'tey, it was like she was on autopilot. “Uh…”

Tsu’tey stared at her waiting for her to spit out her answer. If she was in her human body her whole face would have been red. Thank god she wasn't in the human body.  _ “...dinner is ready.”  _ she squeaked out _.  _

His eyes widened,  _ “already? _ ” 

“ _ Yes.” _ she lied. She looked up through the pink tendrils of the tree and up at the sky, it was about two hours before dinner would be officially ready.

Tsu’tey walked past Tomie, giving a nod of acknowledgement before leaving the grove. Tomie followed after Tsu’tey.

* * *

Jae ran after Tomie, who just left the cafeteria. Jae and Tomie quickly became close friends, such as attending random classes together, eating together. They just bounced off eachother. Tomie was glad, she jae to call a close friend, especially when you are on a different planet. Tomie remembered when she studied “abroad” on mars, she didn't make close friends or friends that would invite her out and that rather placed a damper on her whole trip overall. 

“Tomie!” he ran into her. 

Tomie stumbled forward and quickly turned around feigning offense, “Where were you?”

Jae placed his hand over his heart dramatically, “ I was signing us up for first aid class and it starts in five minutes.”

Tomie glared at him, “You now just tell me?” 

“hey , you're always in the link machine, what am I supposed to do? Leave a sticky note by your machine?” Jae explained.

“ Yes.” Tomie deadpanned.

“Besides the point, class is going to start.” Jae grabbed Tomie’s hand, “Lets go!” Jae pulled Tomie along the long lengthy gray hallway, ducking and dodging other people, such as RDA workers and SecOps and scientists. Jae pulled her into the classroom where the tables were set in rows and there were two people at each table, presumably partners. They hurried to the tables and there started a long night of learning cpr, how to stop bleeding, how to properly pack wounds, dealing with broken bones, respiratory emergencies, burns and so forth.

Tomie left the class mentally exhausted. The small dinner helped boost her energy but the whole practicing of cpr on dummies took a lot of energy out of her. She headed to her room and opened the door and found a sleeping Phoebe. She remembered her request to study somewhere else and she wanted respect. So Tomie quickly grabbed her stuff and hurried out the room and headed towards the cafeteria. She immediately plopped down on her seats and flipped her book open. It had been hours since she initially arrived and began studying in the empty cafeteria, few chairs were stacked against the walls, others were resting on top of the table. She would occasionally hear footsteps echo past the open cafeteria but it was usually the SecOps patrolling or a scientist pulling an all-nighter. She scanned the book and occasionally wrote in her notebook about the Krebs cycle. She couldn't help massage her temples and flip back a couple pages,nodding her head to some tunes blasting from her vintage-styled airpods. She felt a tap on her shoulder, she looked over and saw Grace, standing with a perturbed look on her face. She takes the headphones out of her ear, “ Hey Grace what's up.”

“Get packin’ we are getting out of here.” 

Tomie’s face contorted into concern, “ Why?”

Grace placed her hand on her hips, “I'm sick of Selfridge and Quatritch ruin this whole thing we got going.” 

Tomie stood up from her seat, “What do you mean?”

Grace sighed, “ If you see Jake do anyhting weird or stupid,” she grumbled” Or anything that could jepordize this whole thing! Tell me.” 

Tomie nodded.

“Now pick up your books and get movin’, we are leaving soon.” Tomie grabbed her stuff and quickly followed Grace out of the cafeteria. 

Tomie slung her bag onto the table. It was now morning and Tomie hadn't planned on pulling an all nighter but she did. She stood against the lab atbe, packing the computers in a specialized bag, she occasionally rubbed her tired eyes and resumed packing. The scientists and link specialists scrambled around, downloading data, packing away pipets and more. Norm was by her, wrapping up some extra cords. 

“The Hallelujah mountains?” he asked after hearing Grace talking about the team relocating to the mountains. Tomie finally finished packing the last of the stuff, in the giant locker containers, which showed the RDA logo. Guess you really can't escape them, even on a plant 4.4 million light years away from earth or that you are literally working for the organization. “Yes!” Norm laughed.

Tomie walked up to Grace, “We are done packing the computer equipment.”

The doctor clapped her hands together. “Alright let's get this show on the road.” and walked up to Max. Tomie Takahashi looked at Jake, who was nervously looking around, as if he was guilty. He caught her eyes, and nodded at her in acknowledgement.

Tomie raised her eyebrows and looked away. 

  
  


Trudy Chacon maneuvered the joystick and she drove the helicopter. The rising sun lit up the way for Trudy as she naviated the pandoran sky. Beside her was Norm with his huge headset, occasionally adjusting it. In the back sat Grace, with her arms crossed leaning back, relaxing. She too, pulled an all-nighter. In the middle was Jake who was leaning forward peering between the two seats that held the pilot, Trudy. And the “co-pilot”, Norm. On the other side was Tomie, who was leaning back, her arms were loosely crossed, leaning back against the cool metal wall, eyes closed, mouth slightly opened.

The mountains came into view, Jake quickly turned around and shook the sleeping girl. Tomie groaned with irritation. “ the mountains are coming into the view” and the instruments glitched out. Tomie opened her groggy eyes and arched her back stretching. “We are getting close”. The young girl looked at the instrument that lay at Trudy’s and Norm’s knees. “Yeah, look at my instruments.” The hallelujah mountains came into view and the and the new avatar drivers stared in awe at the legendary floating mountains. There is nothing like this on earth. The mountains looked like something out of legend of zelda, some mountains have their own water system, such as waterfalls falling into the sky, blending in with the clouds. The greenery waved at the flying helicopter, welcoming them to the new region. Some floating mountains were anchored to the floating mountains through vines, holding onto a piece of each other. Tomie leaned forward along with Jake peering up at the magical, totally unreal world before her. She remembered seeing pictures of these mountains as a kid, her mom would show her pictures of Pandora, and the Hallelujah mountains were one of her favorite photos. The helicopter turned and site 26 came into view.

They finally landed on the mountain that held the mobile link up at Site 26. Tomie was lucky enough to get the bunk that had a desk extension which held her books and independent study materials.They spent early omring unpacking everything and making site 26, their “home”.

  
  


Grace led her into the glitch room, “ Here they are the two least glitchy links. Norm I want you to operate Jak’s link, while I operate Tomie’s link.”

“What!?” Norm exclaimed.

“Uh oh…” Tomie mumbled to herself, lifting the lid of the link.

Jake backed in with his wheelchair, “what problem with it?”

“Yeah!” Norm answered it like it was a rhetorical question. Like of course he did, it was obvious. “I do, I trained three years for this mission, I speak the language fluently” Norm points at Jake accusingly, “ He falls off the freakin’ turnip truck and all the sudden he’s cultural ambassador?” 

“Norm, chill out.” Tomie steps in.

“ and you!” Norm points an accusing finger at Tomie, “you're practically a child!” he exclaims.

, “It's not our choice, Norm.” Grace attempted to soothe the situation.

Norm rubbed his head in anger, “well, you know what I didn't come here to wash dishes while you are here on some interspecies booty call.” and with that he storms off.

Both Jake and Tomie looked at each other before entering their link. The whole vibe in the small link room was extremely awkward

* * *

The female dreamwalker drew the bow string, the hand that held the string and arrow in place was facing inward once again. Tsu’tey tapped her hand, “ you supposed to do it like this.” demonstrating that the proper way to the hold the arrow, is with your palm facing outward,

Tomie couldn't help but grumble, and fix her hand placement, it felt uncomfortable against the wrist. She drew the arrow once again. Tsu’tey tapped her hand once again.

_ “What!? I am doing the palm thingy.”  _ Tomie complained in Na’vi. 

_ “Your fingers are wrong.”  _ Tsu’tey demonstrated once again, holding the arrow, like a na’vi would. 

Tomie looked back at her own hand. “ _ That's because I have five fingers, Tsu’tey. _ ” 

The Na’vi warrior frowned, “ _ It doesn't look right _ .’

_ “Of course it doesn't look right! I have five fingers.”  _ Tomie placed the bow and arrow on the ground.  _ “ Hold your hand up, Tsu’tey.” _

Tsu’tey glared at the short dreamwalker, he placed his arrows back in the slot and the bow over his shoulders. He raised his hand up, his palm facing towards Tomie. Tomie raised her hand and placed her palm against his. All four of Tomie’s fingers were lined up to Tsu’teys fingers, all except one, which was the pinkie, which she wiggled. _ “See I have five fingers, while you have four.”  _ she tilted her head to side and gave him a smile, showing her sharp canines, knowing that she was right. Tsu'tey felt his heart beat fast with this prolonged contact, he quickly drew back his hand and grabbed his bow. 

“ _ Try again.”  _ Tsu’tey coughed.

Tomie grabbed her bow, placed the arrows in between her fingers and drew back the string, doing everything right.

__

_ “The strength comes from core.”  _ Tsu’tey explained.

Tomie flexed her core muscles.

_ “Good.”  _ She finally received praise from the angry boy, who had been hyperfocusing on her hand for the past thirty minutes. Tomie took a deep breathe in and released the arrow. The arrow flew and landed on the second inner ring. 

She turned to look at her na’vi teacher. “ _ How did I do?” _

_ “Bad. _ ” Tomie’s face dropped. _ “Try again.” _

Tomie raised her bow back up and tried again, still hitting the outer ring.  _ “Again.” _ the Na’vi warrior stated stoically.

The dreamwalker raised her bow up. She released the string, catapulting the arrow to hit the third inner ring which was closer to the bullseye than the first couple hundred times. Tomie felt her fingers cramp up. She looked at Tsu’tey for validation and half-hearted praise at the very least.  _ “Try again.” _

The short girl groaned, her tail swished in irritation.  _ “Watch your tail, child.”  _ The older na’vi woman next to her was chastised. Tomie looked at her tail seeing it swished around like an angry cat ready pounce. 

Tomie took a deep breath and began launching the arrows for the rest of the day until she was able to hit four bullseye consecutively. The sun was setting and the gas giant above them was no longer a light peach but a blue. It was now just Tsu’tey and Tomie at the archery range.

_ “One more.” _ The young dreamwalker raised the training bow once again, drew the arrow back, she felt someone breathing on her neck, Tsu’tey was standing behind her, gently lifting the arm, that drawing the arrow in correct position, he placed his hand on her stomach, causing her to tense up,  _ “Txur ni’ul”  _ He took a step back, looking at Tomie, maybe admiring her.

Tomie was too focused on trying to get five consecutive bullseyes to notice Tsu’tey staring at her intently. Tomie released the arrow, it went flying and it hit bullseye. Tomie fistpumped and did little dance. She turned Tsu’tey and smiled wide, her eyes forming into crescent moons. Tsu’tey remained indifferent and little confused by the little dance Tomie did.  _ “Lets go. _ ” he simply said.

Tsu’tey walked off, while Tomie stood there watching him. Tsu’tey stopped and turned around,  _ “follow me.”  _

“ _ Oh, sure. _ ” Tomie skipped into a light trot, following Tsu’tey into the hometree, following him up the catwalk, all the way up to the top, passing through multiple levels, passing by the small locker-alcoves from the first day she arrived, passing where the hammocks and sleeping quarter reside and passing multiple levels. Tsu’tey jumped up onto a thinner branch, close to the foliage, Tomie mimicked his moves, slightly stumbling a bit but she was doing a lot better than when she initially arrived but still felt the tinge of fear in her heart. Tsu’tey rounded the corner revealing a herd of Ikrans roosting up in the branches. They squealed at the presence of the na’vi and dreamwalker.

_ “AIYi! Yi! Yi!” _ Tsu’tey called. 

Tomie peered around the corner, her ears flicked forward as she watched this giant blue-ish-green-ish ikran float down, flapping its wings, kicking up dusting and leaves. Tsu’tey raises his hand up and the ikran’s primary and secondary eyes dilated wide and happily placed it’s head against his hand, purring happily. 

“T-this is an ikran.” Tomie stated.

“Yes.” Tsu’tey petted his ikran. “ This is the reason, I have been pushing you and peers…” he began, all cordial-like, “have you heard of Iknimaya?” 

“I heard parts of stories and here and there.” Tomie shrugged. Staring at the ikran.

“Don't make eye contact with him.” Tsu’tey chastised. Tomie diverted her attention down to the floor, her tail twitched nervously.  _ “Iknimaya is a right of passage for every young na’vi warrior, bonding with an ikran will solidify your place amongst the Omaticaya people.” _ Tsu’tey explained.

Tomie stared at him, _ “ Why are you saying this to me?” _ She didn't understand, weeks ago, Tsu’tey told her that she would never be one of the people, that she would never make it, he proposal made things harder for her but it all changed. Tomie felt she just got whiplashed.

Tsu’tey looked out at his ikan and out into the distant, admiring the Pandoran beauty that Ewya created. Ewya was the reason why.  _ “Ewya’s will. _ ” he simply said. It seemed that Ewya wanted Tomie to be under Tsu’tey as his protege, that she wanted him to teach the dreamwalker, to learn to forgive, to learn to let go of the past, but resisted against that. Tomie to him represented the future and change. But he didn't know what kind of change, change for the better? Or the worst? Tsu’tey dismissed his ikran and excused himself, leaving Tomie up there by herself. 

She stared at the Pandoran forest, her eyes picked up the glowing blue, pink, green, purple, magenta, orange plants from below, the soft calls and yips from the animals. The light falling of water from the distance. Everything here seemed to glow, everything here seemed to make sense. It was simple but yet so complex, completely opposite of humans, who appeared so complex but yet simple. She took in the scenery once again, remembering that her camera was still there in one of “locker-alcoves” given to others by Tsu’tey. She rushed down to where the camera was, she pulled aside the tan curtain and just saw her backpack and clothes, neatly folded. Huh? She left the camera on top of her clothes and it was no longer there. Tomie turned to her backpack and opened it, it was just survival supplies, no camera. She knew the na’vi kids didn't take it because they barely went this high up in the tree, without adult supervision. 

_ “To’mietakahashi. _ ” a familiar voice called out.

Tomie stepped out of the alcove and was met with Tsu’tey standing there with his amr crossed and chest puffed out. _ “Dinner is ready.” _

“ oh, okay.” Tomie pulled the curtain shut, feeling a strange pit in her stomach. She followed Tsu’tey down to the communal part of the tree. 

The village was already at the center of the fire, the orange glow of the fire was dancing against the wall. Tomie sat down next to Tsu’tye as Neytiri and Jake were in a deep conversation. Tsu’tey handed her a leaf wrapped dinner and she ate, watching and occasionally practicing her na’vi with the people around her. Her interaction with Tsu’tey usually ended around this time, because it seems that he doesn't talk to or even acknowledge her in the presence of others, only during the day and in front of few people if there's a purpose to be interacting. She felt that she and Tsu’tey could be friends. She looked at her conversation from an older and lovely Na’vi native, who was talking to her about the history of the loom, to see Jake leaving the circle. 

* * *

Tomie sat at the small breakfast table with Norm and Jake. Norm was helping Jake catch up to speed by repeatedly say “I see you.'' Jake responded with “I see you.”

“No, Jake, I see you.” Norm does the hand gesture greeting. Jake mimics him but its not good enough for Norm.

Tomie couldn't help but chuckles, “ Jake it's like, I see you, as in, I see into you, I acknowledge you.” She explains.

“Yeah…” Norm agreed, “...It's not that I see you physically.”

Tomie playfully hit Jake’s shoulder, “ He thinks you're a skxawng.

Jake let out slight chuckle before teasing Norm, “So you and Trudy”

Tomie’s eyes widened. “You and Trudy?”

“Yes” Nomr confirmed.

“As in Trudy Chacon? The pilot?” Tomie leaned forward on the table.

“Yes.”

Jake let out an laugh, “Oh man, Tomie you should've seen their face when I caught them, do you know what.”

“Here?”

Norm's face turned red, “Not here on the breakfast table!”

“On his bed.” Jake grinned, “ right by the entrance.”

* * *

Tsu’tey guided Tomie through the wet rainforest, he followed the tracks, Tomie followed quickly behind, picking up every move from Tsu’tey. His ears perked up, and his tail swished in anticipation, his blue striped skin gleams and the water droplets rolled off his toned arms. He took off stealthily running and Tomie followed in suit. He fell to a crouch, hiding behind the giant green bush. Tomie dropped to her knee and did a quick marine crawl to see what Tsu’tey was seeing. It was a pack of nantang and its puppies. Tomies ear perked forward, the puppies were seeking shelter beneath its momma from the rain. The young dreamwalker stared in astonishment at nature. Tsu’tey tapped her, signalling her to retreat. They took their time walking back, the forest began to glow, asnigh time ensued. Tomie stared in wonder touching the mushroom with her childlike wonder. 

Tsu’tey wondered if that there was anything like this back where she came from.  _ “Do you not have anything like this back where you came from?” _

Tomie stared at the glowing plants,  _ “Not really, if you count  _ jellyfish..” She cocked her head to the side, “ _ Or those _ giant oarfish…” she paused pondering,  _ “or any deep sea creature. So no. Like land animals and plants don't glow, like they do here.” _

“Sad.” Tsu’tey responded in english.

Tomie couldn't help but chuckle. “ Yep…” They walked along the path, “ _... one time back on earth, me and my friends wanted to see the sunset from atop of the mountain so we hiked it for like two hours, watched the sunset for like only a couple minutes, and had like six minutes, to hike down the mountain and run through the forest before it became pitch black.”  _ Tomie chuckled

Tsu’tey blinked, “ _ So, your forests, they are pitch black? _ ”

_ “Yep, cant see anything about a couple feet in front of you.” _ Tomie touched another giant mushroom, glowed brighter at the contact. “ _ Pretty much the only thing that lit up the night sky would be the stars, but the city’s have gotten too bright and too big for you to see them anymore, you had to go to an extremely rural place to see the Milky Way, basically.”  _ Tomie looked up at Tsu’tey with her big doe-like eyes, the white luminescent dots glow’d brighter as she continued to talk about her homeplanet. 

But Tsu’tey noticed something about Tomie when she talked about her homeplanet, she regarded it with a sad quality, her demeanor held a melancholic languor as she spoke of a supposed happy memory. “ _ Are you sad? _ ” 

Tomie flinched as she quickly shut up. She looks at the path beyonds them, her ear flicks at the sound of the Na’vi people chatting nearby, “ _ We are almost to the home tree, lets go.”  _ she spun her heel and walked ahead of Tsu’tey. Tomie blinked rapidly to keep the tears at bay. Maybe she was homesick. Waking up and being on the other side of the galaxy was about 4.4 light years away from the very home she grew up in, fell in,love for the first time, got her heart broken, achieved and lost was definitely hard, but it didn't hit her until now. She walked into the home tree, the fire danced in front of the sitting people, chatting and eating. Tomie spotted Jake and sat down next to him. Jake gave her a concerned look but instead wordlessly gave her the dinner for tonight. Neytiri was busy talking to the people on the right to her, cooing to the kid that talked about their day. Tsu’tey walked off to his usual spot next to the clan chief, and the left of him was an empty spot, where Tomie sat next to him.

Tomie turned to Jake, “ long time no see.” 

“Yeah, we haven't hung out much since we arrived here.” he shook his head.

“What did you and Neytiri do today?” Tomie asked. She took a bite out of the vegetable. 

“I learned Na’vi.” he peers over his shoulder looking at Neytiri with softness before turning back to Tomie, with an incredulous smile, “ You know, she calls me a  _ Skxawng _ almost daily.” 

Tomie laughed, tilting her head side to side, “ She's not wrong.”

Jake face dropped dramatically, before shoving her playfully. Tomie let out a laugh before shoving him back. Tomie and Jake’s relationship are more brotherly and sisterly. Tomie never had an older brother or any sibling in that regard. It was just her mom and her. So building a relationship that resembled the family dynamic brought tomie comfort as she was raised the family was important. Tomie felt a tap on her shoulder, and was met with an older Na’vi woman, who recognized her from the archery range. She was the on that Tomie, to “Watch her tail.” Tomie greeted her with fondness and the older lady inquired about her one-on-one training with Tsu’tey. Jake looked around on either side of him, to the left, was Tomie, chatting with the older Na’vi woman and to the left of him Neytiri, talking with a family. Jake stood up and walked off to the upper levels of the tree. Unbeknownst him Tomie was watching him.

_ “Excuse me, my friend needs something.”  _ Tomie excused herself.

The old Na’vi woman responded with a warm, close lipped smile, “  _ No worries, we will continue our conversation soon.” _

Tomie quickly got up, hopping over the tails that swished, she left the communal room and scampered up the spiral base of the home tree, she jumped on the upper branch Her ears twitched at a familiar sound, was that a camera clicking?

Tomie peered around the corner, finding Jake using her camera to take pictures of the internal structure of the hometree. She took a step out of the shadow. “Jake, what are you doing?”

Jake immediately dropped the camera from his face. He turned around and was met with Tomie, who wore a mask of disappointment . She strolled up to him, and snatched the camera out of his hand. “It not what it looks like.” Jake attempted to defend himself.

Tomie ignored him, clicking the button rapidly, sifting through the pictures he took, all the pictures Jake took were all pictures of the Hometree, and it supporting bases and rings. “Then why does it look like pictures of the tree structure?” 

Jake froze.

Tomie saw right through him, “what were you going to do with these pictures?” she continued to click the button, with a bit more force, “ you weren't going to give to Dr. Grace Augustine, because I would've known about this and Norm wouldn't have asked you cause he still thinks you're a skxawng who stole his mission. So what was the reason for these pictures?”

“You wouldnt understand.” Jake reached for the camera.

Tomie turned away from him, “Oh I think would…” her words were cold, “ what do they have over you?”

“They?” Jake feigned innocence.

“RDA dumbass!” The female dream walker remarked harshly, “what is it? Money? Power?” She paused, her eyes narrowing at the male dream walker, “your legs.”

That struck a chord within Jake, as he flatten his ears and looked to the side shamelessly.

Tomie frowned, her tail swished in anger and her ears were flatten, tears welled up in her eyes. She looked down at the camera and looked up at the branches above her. She immediately took off running, jumping up to the higher levels, Jake quickly followed “shouting wait.” They reached at the top of the tree, the tamed banshees that rested and roosted above let out squawks at the new presence. Tomie walked across the edge, the view of Pandora’s jungle glowed at night, with gleams of blue here and there, the sound of the waterfall in the distance filled their ears. 

Tomie held the camera in her hand, took a deep breath. “Yeet!” 

“Wait!” Jake called as she chucked the camera off the very top of the home tree into the night sky. Tomie turned to Jake and walked back to her nivi. 

Tomie opened her eyes and threw open the lid of her link. She swung her leg out of the link and was met with Jake in his wheelchair blocking her way.

“Get out of my way.” She was perpetually pissed.

“No. Not until you listen to what I have to say.” Jake attempted to reason.

“Is it enough to move a group of people that’s been there for hundreds, no thous-, no! Millions of years!” Tomie exclaimed. The two scientists immediately ran into the small link room, to the scene that was going down. 

Jake was silent. It confirmed that Tomie was right.

“ Fuck you.” Tomie pushed her way around Jake and shoved past Grace and Norm.

“Tomie!” Jake called after her. 

“ Don’t say my name!” Tomie yelled from the bedroom.

Grace patted Norm’s shoulder while looking at Jake, “guess she can’t get too far, let her cool off.”

* * *

~Chapter 7 sneak peak~

Tomie stood by the village entrance, while Jake brought Grace and Norm through the village. She saw figure waving from the distance, she squinted her yellow eyes. 

It was Grace!

Tomie ran up to the trio, “Is that you, Tomie?” Grace gave her a hug before taking a step back and drinking in the young girl’s appearance. Tomie sorted a couple braids that framed her face, while the rest of her laid long and loose, the decorative shawl barely covered the lower portion of her breast was a orange-ish color, the loin cloth was modest at best, and Tomie held some jewelry as she wore a netted bracelet with beads woven through on her biceps. “ You look so pretty!” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this chapter if you have any questions, don't be afraid to contact me at my tumblr at terratabula.


	7. Grace Visits and A Growing Flame

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Grace visiting, the conflict between Tomie and Jake rears its head at the end of the day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys enjoy this chapter. Sorry to keep you guys waiting on this chapter. I got real busy. I graduated, im changed my major, im applying to jobs, and seeing a therapist. Im in school right now, so updates are giong to vary and im writing another story which hoepfully be posted in the near future.

Tomie had spent the past two weeks ignoring Jake. If Jake was in the link room, Tomie was in her bed, if Jake was over by the table, eating breakfast, Tomie was over in the link room, eating her breakfast, flat ot ignoring Jake. There isn't enough space in the shack, that rested on top the floating mountain but when they were in their avatar body, Tomie could run to the top of the tree and chill in the alcove, once she heard Jake trying to find her to once again apologize. Her mother always said she was stubborn, hard head, and hot headed, and for once she agreed, but will she change her ways, even if it was for right cause. 

Now it was week three of ignoring Jake and Grace was supposed to come by and visit the tribe. Tomie stood by the village entrance, while Jake brought Grace and Norm through the village. She saw figure waving from the distance, she squinted her yellow eyes. 

Grace.

“Is that you, Tomie?” Grace gave her a hug before taking a step back and drinking in the young girl’s appearance. Tomie sorted a couple braids that framed her face, while the rest of her laid long and loose, the decorative shawl barely covered the lower portion of her breast was a orange-ish color, the loin cloth was modest at best, and Tomie held some jewelry as she wore a netted bracelet with beads woven through on her biceps. “ You look so pretty!” 

She smiled in response, her cheeks burned at the compliment.

“Tomie, I brought your school work and books here, since you’ve been spending most of your time here.” She handed her a bag filled with her schoolwork and books and pens and more. “We wouldn’t want you to fall behind. Especially when you are so close to graduating.”

“Oh, thank you.” Tomie forgot about her school obligations. If she fell behind and failed- she would loose her scholarship, and be sent back home.

Tomie looked at Norm who was nervously fidgeting next to Jake. “Hey Norm. Are you nervous?”

“Is it obvious?” He breathed out. 

Tomie couldn’t help but smile at his antics, “you have nothing to worry about. They walked into the hometree, the Tsahik greeted them, her regal face filled with wisdom lit up at the new guest and a familiar face. “It is so nice to see you again.” 

“Its good to see you again, Mo’at.” Grace smiled, “I hope these two arent giving you any trouble.”

Mo’at looked at Tomie, who had her arms crossed and Jake looked at her with a guilt-ridden face. The pair looked like siblings that had fought recently. “Not that I know of.” Grace replied sarcastically. It was needless to say, that the tension in the small, rectangular shack on a floating mountain, took up the whole space, leaving the people not invoked in the conflict pressed against the walls. 

Grace pulled Norm forward, “This is Norm.”

Norm looked back and forth from Jake and Tomie to Mo’at. He never would've thought this would happen especially after Jake and Tomie “stole” his mission. He cleared his throat, “ “May the all Mother…” he slightly bows his head in greeting, “ ...smile upon our first meeting.” 

Mo’at raised her eyebrows in amusement and turned to Grace, “ He speaks well.”

Tomie looked ahead of her, the na’vi children stood in the background waiting, looking at Grace with excitement. Tomie looked at Grace, “Look your students recognized you.” 

Grace turned to Mo’at with a look of permission. “ go ahead.”

Grace walked up to her former students, greeting them in Na’vi, she crouched down to their level, their bright yellow eyes, greeted her and touched her with childlike wonder. Tomie smiled, Grace was a wonderful teacher, and did not deserve to get her school taken away. 

Tomie stood in the background watching Grace dote on the children. The children wanted to show Grace around the tree and Tomie followed in suit, it really was being dragged along just like Grace was. They reached an outside area, just west of the hometree. Grace kneeled down holding a doll while Tomie held a child. 

In the shrubbery, his Tsu’tey. He was on a walk before seeing his old teacher, Grace with Tomie surrounded by children. He quickly ducks down, adjusting himself, making himself look presentable to Grace and Tomie. He found himself getting gussied up for the dreamwalker student, but he just chalked it down to getting older, and wanting to look best in any situation. Tomie couldn’t be the cause for his want to look good, that’s because she was a dreamwalker. 

Tsu’tey popped out from behind the bush, catching Grace’s attention, “Tsu’tey?” Grace calls out. “Is that you?” 

Tsu’tey nods, “it is.”

“Oh, have you grown.” Grace reached out and touched Tsu’tey’s cheeks. 

Tomie stood there watching. She never saw Tsu’tey go soft for anybody, like this. He was like a cat, getting head scratches. 

“I heard that Tomie is your student.” Grace inquires. Tomie’s ear perks up as she look towards the scientist. 

“Yes she is.” Tsu’tey simply agrees. He looks over at Tomie who was obviously listening in the conversation. He steals a couple more glances, constructing the full mental picture of her holding a child.

“She’s also my student, she's really smart.” Grace remarks

“Yes, she is…” Tsu’tey repeats, as he steals one more glance at the young dreamwalker.

* * *

Jake and Tomie waved and said their good-byes as Grace and Norm were escorted by Na’vi warriors back to the helicopter, where Trudy waited. Tomie could hear the chopper blades whirring and rustling of the leaves as it waits, and takes off. 

It was now time for the clan meal which Tomie was looking forward to. All she wanted was to just sit by Tsu’tey and eat silently and go to sleep. But Jake has plans on interrupting her, right before they enter the common area where people were gathered, getting their food and eating. 

Jake grabbed her arm. “You’ve been ignoring me.” 

She pulled her arm away, “leave me alone.” She tried to walk off.

“No.” Jake ran informs of her, blocking her path. “You haven’t accepted my apology.”

“And I don’t need too.” Her tail swished in anger.

He grabbed her hand, “please…” he looked around, Tomie being mad at him was obviously stressing him out, “....what can I do?”

She quickly pulled her hand away, “Stop.”

“What?”

“You heard me, stop doing what you are doing.” She demanded.

“I can’t-“

“You can’t, or you won’t?” She snapped.

Jake look over Tomie, the Omaticaya tribe was beginning to stare at the two bickering dreamwalkers. “You won’t understand…”

Tomie took a step back, “oh my god…” she looked around at the floor, the feeling of anger bubbles inside her chest, “oh god.” She looked up at the male dream walker, “fuck you!” She spat.

The entire clan was staring, especially Neytiri and Tsu’tey.

“Shhhh.” Jake grabbed Tomie’s wrist to pull her away from the line of sight of the clan. “Can I just explain myself?” He whispered harshly.

Tomie attempted to pull away from him. “Leave me alone!”

“ I would lose the thing I’ve wanted the most” Jake state intensely in her eyes.

However, that did not nothing to smother the fire that was raging behind her yellow eyes. In fact it ignited it, “ He may have offered you something you can’t refused but look at you right now, you already got something he was offered, an second chance to walk again.” She growled. “And you love every second of it, right now.” She got closer to his face, her ears were back with rage and hand her tail swished back and forth, “ You are afraid to be alive, you are afraid to live, you are a hypocrite, you are a conformant, you are liar, I trusted you! You are ruining this for you and for me and everyone!” She yelled, the fire danced behind her, casting an orange glow, 

the clan watched intensely as Tomie screamed in Jakes face. 

“Your an asshole!” She attempted to rip her hands out of his grip. 

“Hey, calm down.”

“Get off of me!” She ripped her hands away from Jake’s grip. She hugged her hands to her chest, “Fuck you, I’m not hungry anymore.” Tomie ran up the spiraling roots of the hometree.

The chatter that once filled the clan meal was silence as Jake walked towards the fire to get his meal and sat silently next to Neytiri.

Tomie found her book bag, she sat down and opened the literature, nothing like diving into a different world to escape your emotion except she felt the tears well up in her eyes and run down her cyan cheek. She sniffed and quickly wiped away her tears.

“Tomietakahashi.” A familiar voice rung out. Tomie looked up to see Tsu’tey. “Here.” He tossed her the food wraps. 

She caught it. “Thanks.” She put it aside.

Tsu’tey sat down next to her, he looked at the book quizzically and looked back up to her, “are you ok?” 

“Yeah, I think so.” She looked down at her book, she was at the part where Melos pleads the king to postpone his execution to help plan his sister’s wedding. “Just-“ she sighs. “Jake’s a skxawng.”

Tomie looked up at Tsu’tey, she noticed he was looking at the book. “I have never seen writing like this.” He simply says.

Tomie looks at the book and instantly realizes that the Na’vi were only exposed to Americans and only exposed to American culture of materialism and greed, and English. The country she was from was not much different, she raised the book up, “it’s in Japanese. English is not my first language.” Tomie simply explained. She looked back at her time in Japan. Japan albeit not much different than America but thanks to its orderly and clean country did not suffer the effects of overpopulation, pollution but rather represents the fruits of extreme perseverance as did Melos but also the negative impacts of extreme perseverance with high rates of suicide in young people feeling like they aren’t doing enough and older people who feel useless in society and more with rebellions and such.

He nodded. “ What is the story about?”

And with that, the dream walker and Na’vi warrior sat against the column of the tree, the glow from the orange fire danced its way up to them illuminating and extenuating their high cheekbones and contrasted against their blue skin. Tsu’tey listened intently as Tomie explained the story to him, nodding and even bringing up lore that pertained to the Omaticaya clan. That night, Tomie thought she was going to go to sleep upset. But the tears that once stained her cheeks were replaced with a smile of content. As Tomie and Tsu’tey fell asleep in their ni’vi.

Their hearts beat as one.

* * *

~ Chapter 8 Sneak Peak ~

Tsu’tey picked up the animal, “ You are ready.”

“I am?” she tilted her head....

“Think ‘fly’.” he instructed. 

“Uh…” she braced herself, “Fly!” Tomie’s eyes widen with andreline as the ikran took a dive, her hearts oractically launched itself out of her head and her stomach took its place.

Tsu’tey ran to the edge of the cliff, “ I said ‘think fly” not ‘say’ skxawng!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hopefully I will upload chapter 8 by October but I like to be one chapter ahead. So will be writing chapter 9 and then uploading chapter 8.


	8. Iknimaya

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The trek up the hallelujah mountains along with the guilty stares of Jake and the usual indifference from Tsu'tey and the overall nervousness.

Tomie drew back her arrow, the hexapede stood munching on the tree bark, unaware of the blue huntress. She let out small breathe before releasing the arrow. The yerik let out a groan before falling to the ground. Tomie jumped to her feet, and unsheathing her knife. The blue yerik, laid down letting a pained moan. Tomie put her hand on the yerik, as form of apology, “ I see you, brother and thank you.” Before putting him out of his misery. Tsu’tey watched afar, the light drizzle of the rain coated his cyan skin. She in the yerik’s dead eyes, “ your spirit goes with Eywa….” She unsheathed the knife from the flesh, “ ...your body stays behind to become part of The People.” She shethed her knife back in her pocket. She looked at yerik, lifeless eyes stared up to the sky. She reached over and closed his eyes, a sign of respect.

“You did a good job.” Tsu’tey patted her on the shoulder.

She rocked back onto her feet, pulling the arrow of the yerik. “All he wanted to do was eat.”

“It was the will of Eywa.” Tsu’tey simply explained. 

Tomie nodded. She swung her arrow over her chest.

Tsu’tey picked up the animal, “ You are ready.”

“I am?” she tilted her head. She followed Tsu’tey back to their pa’li. “For what?”

They began trotting back to the hometree, “ I’ll show you.”

The dreamwalker frowned, “ Why won't you show me?” She trotted up to be aside, Tsu’tey.

“Aish! Be patient.” 

Tomie frowned and looked away. She did not like surprises. And she did know she was working towards a goal of something. Just simply saying “you’re ready.” Is very vague and frankly cultish. They arrived at the hometree, and the na’vi immediately  grabbed the yerik off of Tsu’tey’s horse.

* * *

Her face was sour as lemon, maybe even more, as she walked along the cliffside. She stared at the back of her mentor's head, as he led the way. Jake stared head at Tomie who was in front of him. She didn't even acknowledge him, in both avatar and human form. She was essentially giving him the silent treatment. 

Tomie looked up as they finally halted to a stop. The bolder’s floated and vines attached to it kept it anchored from floating away like a balloon. She dismounted her pa’li beside her feet was a rocking rock as it stayed attached to the cliff by gravity and some very strong vines. 

Tomie felt her shoulder tense up. She was nervous and excited all at the same time. Learning to ride an ikran, is the test that every young hunter has to pass. She remembered hearing the stories ater one of the young Na’vi child dragged her to one of the teaching circles, and subsequently sat down listening in awe of the stories, one of them involving the ikran. 

Tomie swung her bow around her shoulders, and looked ahead at a Tsu’tey. Tsu'tey was the leader of the expedition, and it was just Tomie, Jake, Ka’ani and Saeyla 

They spent a good hour climbing the floating rocks, Tomie felt her palms get sweaty and her beating fast. She didn't know whether it was because of how high she was on a moving surface or the exercise.

She hoped it was exercise and denied her own anxiety for the sake of sanity. 

Jake and Tomie looked at each other, occasionally shifting their feet to maintain their balance on the moving boulder. 

Jake shot her a sheepish smile.

Tomie frowned in response.

Jake looked back at Tsu'tey, “ Now what?”

Tsu’tey stood waiting, his eyes focused on the vines coming near. “Salew!” he jumped grabbing the vines and quickly stabilizing his body from swinging and immediately climbed putting one hand in front of another.

Ka’ani and Saeyla followed in suit, climbing the vines after Tsu’tey.

It was now just Tomie and Jake left on the boulder. Tomie, although she is afraid of heights, the feeling of being left on the boulder with Jake was ten-times more stronger. She immediately jumped, launching herself on the vine and quickly stabilizing herself, she wrapped her foot on the vine, and began putting her hand on over each other, and began quickly climbing up Her arms burned but the cool air of the altitude soothed it making her focused better on climbing. 

She finally reached the top of the second floating rock, she felt a tad less anxious as this second boulder had more surface area compared to the pebble that they launched themselves off of.

“Is everybody here?” Tsu;tey shot a look at Jake.

he was rubbing his sore arms. “Ok, lets go.” And with that they took off running, across boulders and large tree-like vines that were the size of sequoias and tall as the red wood trees.

They ducked into a cave, leading them around the water way. Tomie squinted as she followed the movement of the shadow ahead of her. 

The light at the end of the tunnel.

The group halted to stop. Tomie knew that if she complained about being in pain, or showed signs of heavy breathing or any form of exhaustion. Tsu’tey would push you further. She learned that the hard way.

She looked to her right and saw Jake, wiping the sweat off and his chest raising up and down. She looked outside, the flock of ikran screeched as it flew by. She has never seen so many ikrans in one place before.

She heard a call, and Neytiri and her ikran came into view. Her ikran was mint green.

Tomie hoped she got a pretty ikran as she fiddled with her bow. Neytiri and Tsu’tey exchanged greetings, as Tsu’tey walked around looking at the new hunters. Tomie stared at him, holding her chest high, and breathing lightly.

He smiled as he approached the tired Jake, “Jakesully will go first.”

Tomie looked at Jake, who gave a sigh before handing his bow to Tsu’tey, who took it, gladly. Neytiri followed him behind the waterfall. 

Tsu’tey and Tomie followed closely while Ka’ani was the last one. Tomie stood on her tippy toes, looking over Tsu'tey, the roar of the waterfall filled her ears as she saw Jake unfurled a lasso-type rope. The group moved out from the shadows of the waterfall, and saw the cluster of ikrans cawing and screeching at the presence of the blue people. Tomie swung her bow over her shoulders and watched as Jake chased off a few ikran before one decided to square off with him, hissing at him, 

Jake responded with hiss. “Lets dance.” he swung his rope, the ikran lunged at him, he snapped his mouth shut with the rope and immediately jumped on his back. Tomie crouched watching intensely as Jake tried to wrangle the ikran. Tomie’s heart was quickly beating out of her chest, although she was mad at him, she wished him no ill-will as young hunters have died during this process. 

“Make the bond!” Neytiri called out.

Jake grabbed the tswin before being headbutted, and bucked off, he rolled off the cliff. Tomie jumped up to her feet and began running towards Jake. 

“Oof!.” She was pulled back by Tsu'tey, who was holding her arm.

“Wait.”

“But Jake!” she exclaimed.

Jake jumped up from the edge of cliff and immediately hopped on the ikran “Shahaylu!” Neytiri called. Jake wrestled the Ikran. He wrapped his legs around the ikran’s muzzle and grabbed tswin immediately making the bond. 

Tomie rapidly patted Tsu’tey in excitement. Tsu’tey cringed away from Tomie, before shooting her a sharp glare. 

“Think fly.”

“Fly?” Jake’s ikran immediately took off, with screaming Jake on its back.

Tsu’tey turned to Tomie, rubbing his arm. “Your turn.”

The excitement dissipated quickly. She looked at Tsu’tey with an unreadable expression, it was a mixture of mock-betrayal and nervousness before looking at the nest, her lips tightend into a thin line and she furrowed her brows. She reached down and grabbed the “lasso” and jumped down from the ledge. 

The ikran squawked and flew off the cliff. Tomie looked around at the varying colors of ikran. There was one refusing to move, maybe this was the one? She lunged at it, and with a pathetic screech, it flew off the cliffside.

_ Ugh _ . Tomie thought. She gripped the rope tighter, and got further away from the group. Theikran flew off and scampered away from. This was clearly diminishing her self confidence. 

Tomie was met with a hiss coming from the right. She quickly whipped around, she adjusted the rope in her hand, she was met with a light orange ikran.

It hissed once again.

Tomie cocked her head to the side and licked her teeth at the on coming challenge, her ears flicked back and she swished, giving her away her nervousness .

She hissed back.

The ikran lunged at her and she quickly whipped the rope, wrapping it around its muzzle, snapping it mouth shut. The ikran flung his neck whipping Tomie against the bluffs. Tomie yanked the rope toward her, dragging the ikran to her feet. She quickly jumped on its neck, the irkan let out muffled screech, and shook his head around, Tomie reached her leg out and placed the heel of her foot at the crown of his head. Studying ikran anatomy seemed to come in handy in the moment as the placement of her foot rendered the ikran still. Tomie took this chance as to grab the tswin of the ikran, she grabbed her braided one and brought them together, the pink tendrils interlocking rapidly and the pupils of her eyes dilating at the new sensory information flooding through her brain. She shuddered, she will never get used to that sensation.

Tomie took a deep breath in before standing up. The ikran shook its head, its dialated eyes representing a domesticated puppy begging for some treats. 

“ You need to get on it, and seal bond, To’mietakahashi!” Tsu’tey called out. The dreamwalker nodded. She mounted the light orange ikran. She looked at Tsu’tey for further instruction.

“Think ‘fly’.” he instructed. 

“Uh…” she braced herself, “Fly!” Tomie’s eyes widened with adrenaline as the ikran took a dive, her heart practically launched itself out of her head and her stomach took its place.

Tsu’tey ran to the edge of the cliff, “ I said ‘think fly” not ‘say’ skxawng!”

Tomie was too busy not trying to die. “Level out! Level out!” The ikran expanded its wings propelling them up into the air. The clouds blinded her vision before exclaiming in awe. She was flying! She extended her hand out and touched the clouds. “Wahooo!!” 

After the whole ordeal of climbing floating mountains, wrestling with a giant prehistoric like bird creature and flying it. The group returned back to the hometree in time for the clan meal. 

Tomie dismounted her ikran and let him fly up to the foliage of the hometree. Her wind blown hair rested on her shoulders and her smile rested on her face. She was excited to tell Grace about her day.

“Tomie.” Jake called out.

The short dreamwalker turned around. 

“You were worried about me.”

Tomie looked away, “I’m still mad at you, doesn’t mean I can’t worry about you, you do stupid shit all the time.”

Jake laughed, “your about right.” There was a brief pause, “ I’m sorry. I didn’t realize I was jeopardizing this whole thing.” 

Tomie took a deep breath, “I’m glad you realize that.”

“So you forgive me?” He asked hopefully 

Tomie shrugged, “I guess.”

Jake pulled her into a big bear hug, “ I knew you couldn’t stay mad at me, especially from the first person you spoke to in six years.”

Tomie groaned, she placed her hand in his chest and pushed him away, “ ugh! Get off me you big buffoon.” She stumbled away, “you're going to use that against me aren’t you?” 

Jake rubbed her wind blown hair, “yup.” 

  



	9. Something Beyond Eywa

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A celebration that ends with stargazing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> its a short chapter but happy holidays and have a wonderful new years!

The wind blew in her hair. Tsu’tey wondered why she’d never braided her hair or let anybody else touch it but her. She threw arms up, her eyes closed, as touched the clouds that rolled over them. 

“Go up!” Tomie shouted over the roaring wind. Her ikran flapped his wings propelling her up above the clouds. 

Tsu’tey followed in suit. Ahead of the flying pair was a blanket of clouds, the gas giant and its moon shone in front of them.

Tomie looked at Tsu’tey, who was staring at her. She waved, before placing her hand back down the saddle and guiding the ikran towards Tsu’tey’s ikran to make his ikran squawk in response. The Na’vi warrior scowled at her before doing the same. 

Tomie laughed.

“Bank left.” Tsu’tey called out over the wind. Tomie followed Tsu’tey. They went below the blanket of clouds, and were met with a shallow river filled with talioang or strumbeest. They joined other na’vi hunters who were soaring along the river bank and tree skyline and the hunters on the pa’li strolled along the rice bank near the buffalo like creature.

The strumbeest rarely migrated near the Omaticaya clan, so this’ll was once in a lifetime opportunity to experience and do this. 

“Tomie!” A voice from overhead called. 

She whipped her head up, above her was Jake with Neytiri flying on their ikran. Tomie raised her bow up in acknowledgment. 

“Ay! Yi! Yi! Yi!” A familiar call was sounded and Tomie immediately flew up to be aside Tsu’tey who was her partner. Na’vi hunters always hunted in groups and at the very least pairs. 

Tomie and Tsu’tey flew to the edge of the herd circling over the gigantic talioang. Tomie drew her bow, she released it hitting it in between the gap of the armor, making the beast collapse the mud. 

“Yes!” She felt her chest swell with pride as Tsu’tey raised his bow in her honor. She raised it in response. 

She sat with hunters as they chatted about.

“To’mie!” A voice called out, she turned her head, it was h her fellow hunters laughing and talking away. In the far distant, was Grace and Norm who were listening to Jake tell his story.

“To’mie!” a voice called out, she turned her head and was met with a drunk ut familiar face. Maua. He held a lopsided grin and carried two drnks in his hand. “ You should rink with us!” before shoving it in her hands. She blinked and looked around, all the hunters she was chatting with were now getting a round of drinks. Tomie looked down at the liquid, that sloshed in the cup. She has drank before and she knew that she was lightweight. Her face would flushed about a 3rd cup in ad she was known to be an emotional drunk at best. But this was in a different body. 

Tomie raised her cup, “Lets drink!”

The hunters around her whooped before throwing the content in their mouth. Tomie followed in suit, the burning liquid rushed down her throat. She squinted her eyes and shook her head. Tomie breathed out harshly, “Woo!” she felt the effects hit her. 

“One more!”

“One more!” The hunters beside her and Maua passed the drinks around. Tomie swirled the alcoholic beverage around in her hand before drinking the contents once again.

And again.

And again. 

The burning liquid no longer burned her throat. In fact she welcomed it. She wore a sleepy grin and her eyes held a drunken gaze as she was fixated on Tsu’tey.

In a bold and yet drunken stupor, she strutted over. “Hey, Grace!” She shouted, “Hi Norm!” she shouted cheerfully. 

“Are you drunk?” Norm asked

She plopped down next to Tsu’tey. “You betcha’”

The two scientists giggled in response. “She not drunk, she's wasted.”

“To’mietakahashi-”

“Aish! Stop calling me To’mietakahashi!” The drunk dreamwalker pouted, “Its Tomie Takahashi. But you can call me Tomie.” 

Tsu’tey sighed in annoyance, “To’mie-”

Tomie couldn't help roll her eyes in annoyance, “It's not To’mie! It’s Tomie!”

Tsu’tey took a deep breathe in, “To’- Tomie-” 

Tomie gasped as she saw something twinkle in the distance! She stood up and ran in that direction. 

Tsu’tey looked at Grace and Norm who were now dancing with Jake and Neytiri. And back at the drunk girl running off in the distance. Tsu'tey stood up and followed her quickly out of the hometree. Tomie jumped into a glowing field.

Tsu’tey stopped at the girl who disappeared.

She popped up. The grass rustled all around her. “Tsu’tey! It's so pretty!” she spun around, her face was flushed, her eyes were sparkling as she jumped around in glowing grass. “Come over here!” she shouted.

In the distance, the hunt festival echoed from the distance. 

Tomie ran up to Tsu’tey and dragged him to the field before tripping on her own feet and pulling him down with her. She fell on her back while he fell beside her on the ground. Tomie turned to her side laughing.

Tsu’tey couldn't help but smile at her contagious laughter. 

Tomie looked up at the sky, there was the gas giant, Polyphemus, the neighboring moon eclipsed a part of the bright planet in the star like a beauty mark. She took a deep breath, “Isn't the sky beautiful?” she said 

Tsu’tey looked up, seeing the night sky in its full glory.

“Can you believe that there's a universe beyond us…” she rolled to her side, “ you know, I always said that on earth, but to be in a universe beyond where I grew up, is crazy. There Are different stars and planets in the sky and it's so vast” Tomie smiled “my mom used to take me to a rural place, far from the city, just to go stargaze at a nearby shrine. We would lay in the field, and the stars would just light up and she would tell me stories of seeing the milky way galaxy. You don't see many stars on earth, not as much as you do here. She propped herself on herself up on her elbows, “You don't even see a planet! Like you do here!” she plopped back down on the ground staring up at the universe above them. Reach up with hand outstretched, palms spread out.” I mean, you do, you can see Mercury. Or was it Venus?” she questioned out loud, “But that's besides the point, you don't see those planets up close and personal, you don't see the twirling clouds of the atmosphere of the neighboring planet.” 

Tsu’tey looked up at the sky, he never thought of it like that, he never thought that there was something beyond Eywa.


End file.
